House fire claims in Detroit

Detroit's houses are old, they sit close together, and a fire that starts in one often damages the next. Here is what makes a Detroit fire claim different, and where the money usually gets left out.

Why Detroit fire claims run bigger than they look

The houses are old. Nearly eight in ten Detroit homes were built before 1960. Plaster walls, old-growth framing, hardwood floors and original trim cost far more to put back than the drywall and laminate a quick estimate assumes. On a replacement cost policy, the claim is priced on what it costs to rebuild your house, not on what houses in the neighborhood sell for.

Smoke travels through old construction. Balloon framing and old ductwork give smoke an open path from the basement to the attic. Rooms the fire never reached are often contaminated, and a walk-through that only looks at what burned prices them at nothing.

The fire often started next door. A fire in a vacant house can scorch the siding, crack the windows and push smoke into the occupied house beside it. Your own policy usually covers that damage, the same as if the fire had started in your kitchen. Inside the house is where these claims get underpaid, because the outside is all anyone looks at.

Detroit's fire insurance escrow

Detroit uses Michigan's fire insurance withholding law. When a fire settlement on a building is large compared to the coverage on it, part of the payment can be held by the city until the house is repaired or the lot is cleared, and the city publishes a list of properties with escrow on them. The money comes back once you show the work is done. Plan for it before you budget the rebuild, and see how fire insurance claims work in Michigan for how much can be held and the deadlines that apply.

The fire report

Request the fire report from the Detroit Fire Marshal Division through the city's online customer service form. You will need the address and the date of the fire. The report can take a while to arrive, so ask for it early. The insurance company will read it closely, and so should you.

What we have seen on Detroit fires

• A house fire with smoke and firefighting water through the rest of the house. The first offer was $195,748. After we documented the whole house, appraisal settled the building at $319,335.
• A house fire where we were brought in before the insurance company inspected. We arrived at that inspection with a finished, itemized estimate, and it settled at $179,433 in three months.
• A fire that burned through the upper floor. We documented the structure inside and out, and it settled at the full dwelling limit of $190,000.

Every claim is different, and these are not a promise about yours. They show where the gap usually is: in the parts of the house that did not burn.

Where we come in

Our Metro Detroit office in Ferndale is just over the city line. We read your policy, document the whole loss room by room, build the estimate the way a contractor would price the rebuild, and deal with the insurance company for you. There is no fee until you recover. Here is how we handle fire and smoke damage claims.