How we work, and what it costs
What happens between your first message and the signed award, in the order it happens, with the fee stated at every step.
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1
A conversation, and a policy review
You tell us what happened, where, and what the carrier has said and paid. We read the policy, the estimate and the letters. Then we tell you plainly whether your disagreement is one appraisal can settle, what your state's rules add, and what deadline in the policy you need to watch. If appraisal is not the right tool, we say so and point you elsewhere.
No charge
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2
Retainer and demand
If you decide to go ahead, a $500 deposit retains us and opens the file. We give you the demand letter naming us as your appraiser, or, if the carrier has already demanded appraisal, we respond as your appointee. Where a state requires it, we are registered or licensed to serve.
$500 to begin
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3
Inspection and estimate
We inspect the property, usually together with the carrier's appraiser, and document everything: measurements, photographs, materials, code requirements. We then prepare a line-by-line estimate in the same software the carrier uses, so the two estimates can be compared item for item.
Included
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4
Working through the differences
We meet with the carrier's appraiser and go through both estimates line by line. Most items are settled here. We keep you informed of what has been agreed, what is still open, and why. If the two appraisers agree on everything, the award is drafted and signed without an umpire.
Included
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5
The umpire, if needed
When items remain, they go to the umpire with both positions and the supporting documentation. We present ours and answer the umpire's questions. The umpire decides, and an award signed by any two of the three sets the amount.
Umpire's fee split equally with the carrier
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6
The award
The remaining $2,000 is due when the award is signed. The carrier then pays under the policy's loss payment condition, less what it has already paid and the deductible. We stay available to explain the award and the payment that follows.
$2,000 at signing
The fee, and why it is flat
- $2,500
- Total for a residential appraisal. Due regardless of outcome.
- $500
- Deposit to retain us and open the file.
- $2,000
- Balance, due when the award is signed.
The policy requires an appraiser to be competent and impartial. An appraiser paid a share of the award has a stake in the number, and courts in several states have thrown out awards for exactly that reason. A flat fee keeps us inside the standard the policy sets, and it means our advice about whether to proceed is not coloured by what we would earn.
The fee is for our professional time. It is due whether the award is higher, lower, or the same as the carrier's estimate. We will not take a file where we do not believe appraisal is likely to help.
The carrier pays its own appraiser. The umpire's fee is split equally, as the policy provides. Commercial and association appraisals are a flat $10,000, with $2,000 to begin and $8,000 when the award is signed. How a commercial appraisal works
What we will always tell you
- We work only for you. We do not work for carriers and we do not work for public adjusters. When an attorney or a public adjuster refers a claim to us, we are still your appointee, and we stay inside the appraiser's role.
- We do not decide coverage, and we will not pretend to. If the carrier has denied the claim, we will say so and tell you who can help.
- We will tell you the deadline in your policy for filing suit before you spend a dollar with us, because in most states appraisal does not pause it.
- We will tell you what has been agreed and what is still open at every stage. You will never wonder where the file stands.
Before you decide anything
Has your claim stalled?
Tell us what happened and where. We will read your policy, tell you plainly whether appraisal fits, and what it would cost. No pressure, and no fee for the conversation.
When you write to us
- 1. We read your policy, the carrier’s estimate, and the letters that came with it.
- 2. We tell you plainly whether appraisal fits your disagreement, and if it does not, who can help.
- 3. If it fits, you have the fee in writing before anything starts.