Should I File a First Party or Third Party Insurance Claim?
If you incur property damages due to circumstances beyond your reasonable control, you may undoubtedly know that you deserve financial compensation to repair it. But what you may be doubting is whether you should seek this financial compensation from your own insurance or that of a negligent third party. Follow along to find out whether you should file a first-party or third-party insurance claim and how one of the proficient New York third party claim attorneys at The Law Office of Craig A. Blumberg can point you in the right direction.
How do I know whether to file a first-party or third-party insurance claim?
First of all, a first-party insurance claim is one in which you file directly with your own insurance provider when you have an accident on your property that results in injuries and damages. More specifically, you should opt for this claim type if the following circumstances are applicable:
- A tree on your property falls during a storm and causes structural damage.
- A fire starts in your house and causes fire damage.
- A busted water pipe in your house causes flooding damage.
Contrastingly, a third-party insurance claim is filed against another party’s insurance provider due to their negligent acts that contributed to the accident on your property. Therefore, you should pursue this claim type under the following conditions:
- A tree on your neighbor’s property falls during a storm and damages something on yours.
- A fire starts on your neighbor’s property and the wind spreads it to your house.
- A busted water pipe on your neighbor’s property leads to water runoff that floods your house.
How does the claims process work for both types?
Though first-party and third-party insurance claims are different, they generally follow the same processes. Namely, regardless of whether the claim is filed with your own insurance provider or that of a negligent party, an insurance claims adjuster may be assigned to your case. From here, an adjuster may investigate your property and its losses to ultimately calculate the payout you are entitled to.
Unfortunately, you must anticipate the possibility that an adjuster may offer you a significantly lesser amount than what you are seeking or may altogether deny your claim. This is when you must consider legal representation for negotiating or for filing a formal claim in a New York court. A final point to be made here is that you may only allege bad faith if you were pursuing a first-party claim.
The best way to secure your financial compensation is to retain the services of one of the talented New York third party claim attorneys. So please do not hesitate to get in touch with The Law Office of Craig A. Blumberg today.
