Excel Adjusters: Assistance When Agents Fail

A Korean business owner, planning to relocate to a closer location, found a new location for his factory.

In this situation, if there was any claim involving property loss during the relocation process, then losses pertaining to both locations are compensated.

For example:

There was property loss while the business owner was relocating from the current factory to the new factory. Let’s say that he moved part of his equipment to the new location and during the process, there was theft that involved property loss. Also, the plumbing system burst in the current location and all the merchandise that was still left at the location was damaged. In this situation, both losses can be compensated, after the deductible is applied. The business owner receives compensation for both claims minus the deductible.

Therefore, it is important that the business owner finds out if his insurance covers losses occurring during relocation through his insurance agent, before the actual event. Many claims occur during the relocation process, especially involving theft.

Let us go back to the original story.

The Korean business owner is preparing to move to a new location, but is running his business at the current factory. However, a fire breaks out in a neighboring factory of his current location and the business owner suffers significant property loss and damage.

The business owner asks his agent to file a claim with the company, trusting that he will be compensated. The agent tells him that he will contact the company and will help him receive the compensation. Yet, many months go by and he puts off the process day to day. In frustration, the owner goes to the agent’s office, but the agent refuses to meet him, stating that he is not in the office and an employee tells him that everything will be okay.

After some time had passed, the agent tells him that there’s a problem in the claim process. His employee made a mistake and changed the address of the policy to the new location for the policy that applies to the current factory and the losses occurred after the change in address.

Regardless of the reason, the insurance agent has the responsibility to promptly report his client’s claim to the company. The agent needed to file the claim right away, recognizing that there are many conditions that are difficult to explain in the insurance contract.

After many months had passed, the business owner decided to entrust our company to execute his claim.

There are plenty of reasons for the insurance company to compensate the client in spite of the agent’s mistake because the losses happened while the insured client was planning on relocation. The company cannot just one-sidedly refuse to compensate.

In this case, the name of the client is the same and the only distinction is that the address that the damage occurred is different than what is on the contract.Here’s an example of a similar case to help better understand.

A theft occurred while I stored some of my equipment in another factory temporarily because my factory was too small. In most cases, the owner can be compensated even though the theft was not at my actual factory.

Therefore, if we apply the same principle, the probability of the client being compensated is high regardless of the agent’s mistake. It is wrong for the agent to halt the claim, erroneously thinking that the process will be impossible.

In the business owner’s perspective, it is right for the insurance company to compensate the client’s property loss, even if the agent made a mistake.

Jung Park, PA

Excel Public Adjuster