FIRE DAMAGE CLAIM | Our client, a landlord received a distressing call in the early hours of the morning from one of his panicked tenants. A fire had occurred in the communal hall and caused extensive fire and smoke damage to the property, a Georgian building in Dublin 1 subdivided into 11 separate apartments.
The building had retained all of its original Georgian features, such as original horse hair ceilings, lime plasters, original cornicing, ceiling roses and woodwork and was in immaculate condition prior to the fire. The fire had started in the entrance hall and had quickly spread to adjoining areas. Luckily for the tenants, the fully maintained fire detection system alerted them to the fire and they were safely evacuated.
The landlord was understandably extremely traumatised by the incident. At a time like this, a policyholder needs clear, practical help from someone who has handled claims like it before. The last thing that the policyholder wanted was to deal with the bureaucracy involved in managing a complicated, very large insurance claim. Not only was the property severely damaged, but also our client’s considerable rental income he was receiving from the property, had stopped.
Insurance Claim Solutions were appointed to manage the Fire Damage Claim
The home owner was referred to Insurance Claim Solutions by a close friend. Insurance Claim Solutions carried out an initial site survey and reported the fire damage to the insurers.
We advised that the scene should be preserved for a technical examination. Insurance Claim Solutions met with loss adjusters and contractors on site to establish a plan of action. ICS arranged for the policyholder to get an expedited interim payment to cover loss of rent and stripping out and cleaning, whilst we were confirming policy cover, scope of works etc.
The damage to the property was substantial, all of the rooms had either been fire damaged, smoke damaged or water damaged by fire brigade. The electrics required significant rewiring work, the fire alarm was burned beyond recognition and the plumbing system was affected.
Complexity of the Insurance Claim
As the property had original Georgian finishes and fittings, the fire damage claim was extremely technical and complicated in its nature. ICS has dealt with numerous protected structures and luxury properties in the past, so we understood what a claim like this involves: recording the period features in detail and making sure the reinstatement costs reflected the specialist work they need.
The ICS Claims Manager negotiated the settlement with the insurer’s loss adjuster. The settlement covered the reinstatement work so the property could be put back to a pre-loss condition. It also covered the replacement of the building contents and the loss of rental income. It is worth mentioning that the reinstatement works were carried out with the best building practices and current building regulations whilst being sympathetic to the period features and finishes.