by Victoria De CardenasWed, October 23rd 2024 at 4:22 PM
Updated Wed, October 23rd 2024 at 6:18 PM
It’s been two weeks since tornadoes ripped through our area and as clean-up efforts continue, Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis is spreading a “buyer beware” message when it comes to home repairs.
“It’s unbelievable the type of damage caused by the tornadoes that touched down in this part of the state,” said Patronis.
Since the storms hit, Patronis has sent members of the Division of Criminal Investigations door-to-door to ensure residents aren’t signing their rights away to potential fraudsters.
“They want to try to take over your insurance claim and it can happen to anyone,” said Patronis. “So, the first thing I want you to take away from this press conference is simply, do not sign anything. If you don’t sign anything you have given nobody any access to anything that belongs to you.”
During Hurricane Ian’s devastation, more than 76 criminal investigations were launched and 16 are now behind bars for insurance fraud, according to Patronis.
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To curb that for Hurricane Milton, Patronis unveiled a new program called “Check my Contract.” It’s a portal designed to assist residents and commercial property owners review contracts they’ve entered into with contractors or adjusters related to insurance claims.
“Not all of us are attorneys. Not all of us understand the fine print. Not every roofer, contractor, and public adjuster is providing you a contract that is totally in compliance with Florida statutes,” said Patronis.
Palm Beach County Mayor Maria Sachs believes this could help South Florida and the Treasure Coast rebuild with peace of mind.
“Today is a day of hope, of rebuilding, of coming together as a community. Coming together not just as a county, but as the state of Florida,” said Sachs.
The ‘Check my Contract’ will work side by side with an ‘Emergency Rule’ that Jimmy Patronis issued – aimed at providing more transparency for public adjusters.
Emergency Rule 69BER24-4 is meant to ‘provide residents and property insurers with more transparency’ in the claims adjustment process.
The new rule brings requirements for both insurance adjusters and public adjusters.
This new emergency rule requires adjusters to use an electronic estimating program to create or modify an estimate of loss and it must include cost breakdowns of equipment, materials, and labor.
Any changes are prohibited unless the adjuster can provide documentation for price changes