Polk County residents were not under evacuation orders in advance of Hurricane Milton. However, shelters were opened, local government offices closed, and emergency preparations made. Forty Polk County deputies were recalled from Florida’s Big Bend area, where they’d been supporting law enforcement efforts after Hurricane Helene.
Sandbag filling stations were set up ahead of the storm, and area hotels filled up as residents from coastal cities fled inland to Auburndale, Lakeland, Winter Haven, Orlando, and similar locations. Polk County issued an Emergency Declaration on October 7, 2024, and later extended it through October 28, 2024, in light of significant damage.
If your property has extensive damage from recent storms, you may be eligible to file a claim for reimbursement against your insurance coverage. However, you’ll need to be wary of insurance company methods that often result in delays or denials of much-needed checks. Keep reading to learn more about how to collect evidence to support your claim, how to file for hurricane damage, and when to contact legal representation.
Florin|Roebig attorney Kavon Smith states, “As we work to rebound within the state of Florida, many of us have high hopes of the good of people helping people. The sad thing is that the corporations that offer us insurance like to withhold payouts when it’s their turn to share. Our team at Florin|Roebig is great at reminding insurance companies what it looks like to play well with others, and we’re honored to support our Auburndale neighbors in these stressful times.”
What Are Your Options If Your Home Is Affected by Hurricane Milton?
As you’re wading through whatever Milton’s left of your home and property, know that you have action steps you can take to gather the information you need and file your insurance claim. Sticking to the list below will keep you on the best path to compensation.
Document Your Losses
Tracking the storm’s path across your home and belongings with a camera creates visual proof of Milton’s damage. If you can take videos as well as pictures, it adds another layer to your evidence. Good lighting and an array of angles are key to showing the majority of Milton’s harm.
Review Your Homeowner’s Policy
A thorough read-through of any homeowner, flood, wind, and other related insurance policies can reassure you of coverage. It can also prevent you from filing claims for items not covered and avoid lags in payment.
Contact Your Insurer
In the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, you may see only damage. But keep in mind that the damage translates to dollars in insurance claims, provided you’ve secured policies to protect investments like your home. It’s reasonable to assume that your insurance company will reimburse you for what Milton has taken. Contact your insurance representative as soon as you have everything documented.
Patch What You Can
Leave what you can unrepaired so anyone who needs to inspect it for claims can easily see it. If you have to make your space livable or prevent further damage, use temporary coverings and repairs rather than permanent ones. Save any receipts to add to your filing.
Get Damage Assessed
In addition to questionable insurer actions, unlicensed contractors may be prowling around. For any estimates you seek, verify the contractor’s licensing and reputation. Avoid payments up front whenever possible and only do so when you’ve confirmed their information. You’ll need to compare estimates across contractors and what your insurance adjuster provides. This gives you an idea of the total cost of your repairs and whether a claims check will cover it.
Get Government Assistance
Polk County and Auburndale websites have resource information for all types of assistance for Hurricane Milton victims. If you need help, don’t hesitate to reach out to local authorities. Recovery takes a long time, but this type of aid has a deadline.
If you get overwhelmed dealing with your insurance company at any point in the damage claim process, Florin|Roebig can support your efforts. We’ll review your case for free and inform you of your options in moving forward. If we think you have a reason to push harder against your provider, we’ll help you do that. We’ll also put you in touch with local resources to boost your recuperation from Milton’s devastation.
What Damages Can A Hurricane Like Milton Cause?
In a word: catastrophic. Occurring so closely to Hurricane Helene, which landed on September 26, 2024, Hurricane Milton’s havoc further mangled a weakened state on October 9, 2024. Auburndale residents face several rebuilding challenges.
Hurricane Milton has left Auburndale with these types of storm damage:
- Wind damage
- Water damage and flooding
- Structural damage
- Personal property damage
- Landscaping and exterior property damage
Additional Issues
Damage secondary to all of the above will be caused by continued vulnerability. Holes not covered up are left open to the elements and whatever they may bring, including pests, mold, bacteria, rust, and rot. These exacerbations will happen as insurance companies postpone sending your check, and you’ll suffer the consequences.
If you feel this applies to your situation, contact our legal team at Florin|Roebig. We’ll make sure your insurance company pays what it should to cover the full extent of your wreckage.
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How Did Hurricane Milton Affect Auburndale?
Auburndale was not under any evacuation orders, but Polk County opened multiple shelters for vulnerable residents. Those in mobile homes and RVs and anyone needing medical equipment or other special needs care were encouraged to move to local shelters.
Four hundred houses had serious damage and another 40 were wiped out. Many area roads, including the intersection of K Ville Avenue and Sun Acres Boulevard, were closed because the water was too high to safely traverse them.
Hundreds of residents lost power, though mutual aid workers helped to restore power as quickly as possible. Polk County had downed power lines and trees completely blocking some roads, and a sinkhole opened up the next day, adding to the post-disaster hurdles.
Kavon Smith, Florin|Roebig attorney, says, “For Auburndale and other Polk County residents who need legal support during such stressful times, my team can provide relief. We’ll take the hurricane damage claim paperwork off your hands and take care of the pesky insurance company calls. We’ve been doing it for decades, and we don’t plan to quit anytime soon.”
What to Do if Your Insurance Claim Is Denied After a Hurricane
Following up with your insurance company is the most important thing to do if they deny your claim (or if you’re not hearing back from them as promised). Do your best to remain calm, but ask the hard questions. If your claim is denied, ask why and ask for it to be put in writing. It’s completely within your rights to expect details on why you’re hearing “no.”
Common reasons hurricane damage claims are denied can include:
- Not enough evidence to prove your claim.
- Filing for damages on property not covered under your policy.
- Failing to show that Hurricane Milton caused the damage.
Be wary of insurance adjusters who are never available to take your calls, numbers that don’t work, and any other version of putting you off. Providers want you to make mistakes. They want you to get irritated and give up. It helps them keep the money that customers have paid into the business. At Florin|Roebig, we stick with the follow-up, and insurers know we don’t give up on getting answers.
How Can a Hurricane Damage Lawyer Help?
Our free case review provides an understanding of your claim strength. If we think your case lacks the support it needs, we’ll be upfront about that, saving you time and money. While one of the tasks we can handle is securing the necessary proof of your claim, we can’t create something out of nothing. The proof has to exist for us to collect it. If we think you’ve got a solid foundation, we’ll do what we can to build it into a stronger argument.
Our Auburndale claims team will talk to insurance representatives on your behalf. If they stall us, we’ll take the fight to court. However, most of these cases settle before seeing a courtroom because a judge or jury may take even more away from bad-faith actors at insurance companies.
We’re not trying to trick our clients with fancy jargon. We do our best to clearly explain your chances of winning and what a reasonable settlement looks like for your damage. Florin|Roebig is a family, and our clients become part of that. We dislike insurance providers who want to pick on our family, and we take an anti-bully approach to getting you maximum compensation.
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How to Get Help from Florin|Roebig Attorneys
Getting help from Florin|Roebig attorneys is simple. We’ve put multiple contact options in place. You can choose the one that works best for you. Contact Florin|Roebig to take the next steps on your Hurricane Milton storm damage claim and seek fair compensation from your insurance company.
You can reach us through these methods, using our website contact page:
- Fill out our online form anytime, and we’ll get back to you.
- Call the phone number for your area 24/7.
- Use our chat feature day or night.
After all, you aren’t making an unreasonable request. You’re asking them to honor the contract they’ve signed with you in exchange for the financial support you’ve provided in insurance payments. Florin|Roebig will hold them to their side of the deal.
