geneva0777
New member
This occurs in Dallas, TX. I am a first time home owner. Not even a year after moving in I had a small fire that damaged part of my property. Mitigation company showed up as soon after the fire was put out and I agreed to let them begin repairs right away. They worked for about a week straight then disappeared the entire following week without a word. I got a call from insurance around this time to inform me that my deductible is $10,000. He states my damages are estimated to be under that amount so I wont be receiving a payout. I call the Mitigation company right away to let them know. I asked them to bill me for the work they had done up to that point which wasn't much. The mitigation company tells me instead they will try to get insurance to waive the deductible so I will still get a payout. About a week later some lady from the mitigation office calls me stating the charges to repair the house: $7,800 for repairs and $3,500 for cleaning and a pack-out,. This does not include further charges for a pack-in at a later day. I tell the lady that I cant afford it, and how I spoke to someone who was going to try to get my deductible waived. She reiterates that these are the cost and she knows nothing of a waived deductible, and asks if I want them to proceed with repairs. I tell her no to just bill me for what they have done up to that point, which again isn't very much. I moved on and built up a bit of debt in loans to get the repairs done myself for as low cost as possible. What I couldn't learn to do by myself I figured out a way to pay contactors to do.
Then a couple weeks later when repairs are almost done I get another call from insurance. He tells me he made an error and accidentally sent an overpayment to me, to disregard that check when I receive it in the mail. I was confused as he told me before I would not be getting any payout at all so I ask how could he send a check to me by mistake? He explains that aside from the check he sent out to me in error, he also paid a $7,800 check to the mitigation company for completed repairs. This is a huge surprise... They barely completed anything... I had to figure out how to do the rest myself, it was tough work! The most stress I ever endured in my life meanwhile they had gotten paid this whole time and mentioned nothing to me? I told him this information and he advised that I could either demand they finish the work they got paid for or have them pay me back. As repairs were nearly complete letting them continue work is not an option. So I called the mitigation office to notify them that I was aware they had been sitting on a payout while I struggled to repair my home, and that they were going to pay me back for the work they didn't do. It was a looooong process of delaying and delaying and more delaying just to get them to look over the invoices and give me a number for the work they did complete. Then it was another struggle of disputing dishonest charges with them. Finally they agreed on a reasonable number and told me they will send out the check. It has been long over a month since I first notified them that I knew they got the payment and still I have not received a check.
I am now wondering if there is any room in this story for me to pursue legal remedies in a small claims court? Would it even be worth it? Their communication was horrible. Even within their own office leading me to believe there was no payout. The project manager tried to put the blame on me saying I did the repairs myself on purpose to get more money. I told him no way! That was so stressful I never want to work on a house again! I only did that because the lady, who turned out to be his assistant told me I had to pay for repairs and insurance did not waive the deductible. He had no idea his own assistant told me this!! In a small office with minimal employees he somehow couldn't effectively communicate. Then to drag their feet so badly when they know they owe me, its just bad business.
Then a couple weeks later when repairs are almost done I get another call from insurance. He tells me he made an error and accidentally sent an overpayment to me, to disregard that check when I receive it in the mail. I was confused as he told me before I would not be getting any payout at all so I ask how could he send a check to me by mistake? He explains that aside from the check he sent out to me in error, he also paid a $7,800 check to the mitigation company for completed repairs. This is a huge surprise... They barely completed anything... I had to figure out how to do the rest myself, it was tough work! The most stress I ever endured in my life meanwhile they had gotten paid this whole time and mentioned nothing to me? I told him this information and he advised that I could either demand they finish the work they got paid for or have them pay me back. As repairs were nearly complete letting them continue work is not an option. So I called the mitigation office to notify them that I was aware they had been sitting on a payout while I struggled to repair my home, and that they were going to pay me back for the work they didn't do. It was a looooong process of delaying and delaying and more delaying just to get them to look over the invoices and give me a number for the work they did complete. Then it was another struggle of disputing dishonest charges with them. Finally they agreed on a reasonable number and told me they will send out the check. It has been long over a month since I first notified them that I knew they got the payment and still I have not received a check.
I am now wondering if there is any room in this story for me to pursue legal remedies in a small claims court? Would it even be worth it? Their communication was horrible. Even within their own office leading me to believe there was no payout. The project manager tried to put the blame on me saying I did the repairs myself on purpose to get more money. I told him no way! That was so stressful I never want to work on a house again! I only did that because the lady, who turned out to be his assistant told me I had to pay for repairs and insurance did not waive the deductible. He had no idea his own assistant told me this!! In a small office with minimal employees he somehow couldn't effectively communicate. Then to drag their feet so badly when they know they owe me, its just bad business.
