Grenier Public Adjusters advocates for multiple property owners after devastating fire

In February 2021, a family in Worcester, MA, suffered an incalculable tragedy when three family members died in a dramatic multi-building, five-alarm fire on Jacques Avenue. Other family members barely escaped. News coverage of the fire shows extensive damage on all three floors of the building where the fire originated as well as substantial damage from where the fire jumped to the house next door. Faced with costly losses, the property owners for both buildings called in Grenier Public Adjusters to help them with their insurance claims.

Original offer would not make them whole

It was clear from the outset that the original insurance estimates were nowhere near enough to cover the actual cost for repairs and replacements, either for the structure of the dwelling itself or the contents. For the dwelling, the insurance company’s initial offer was $500,000—not enough to cover the extensive damage across three stories and multiple units. The contents offer was also low enough to suggest that the insurer had not done a thorough job of documenting the losses. Too often, an insurance company’s adjuster will base reimbursement on general estimates, without taking into account a building’s unique features or the particular details of its contents GPA created a detailed supplement demonstrating what the insurer’s initial offer was missing. In the end, GPA helped the claimant get an additional $160,000.

Blueboard, not drywall

For the house next door, after a series of multiple negotiations GPA was able to increase the insurance company’s initial offer of $500,000 to $634,000. That additional $134,000 represents several areas where the first offer fell short, from allowing only $4,000 in electrical work for a 4,500 sq.ft., three-story apartment building, to budgeting for drywall instead of blueboard, to omitting rooms that needed to be gutted. As in many cases, GPA also found that the property owner would need a greater allowance for residential supervision, or the time a contractor takes to sit down with building officials and with the insured to develop and administer the plans for the restoration.

Recovering an extra $300,00

Between the two buildings, GPA uncovered nearly $300,000 in repair and replacement costs that the insurance companies missed. Without that reimbursement, doing the work to make the structure safer and help tenants get their lives back could be too costly to complete.

GPA has worked with many home and property owners who have experienced a devastating fire. Negotiating with the insurance company about the value of your possessions or the cost of home repairs is the last thing you want to think about during that time. When you hire a public adjuster you know you have someone representing only your best interests while you focus on recovering and returning to everyday life.

If you or someone you know has suffered property damage or loss, call Grenier Public Adjusters now, day or night, at 774-239-6822 or fill out our contact form.