Insurance nightmares cost Georgia homeowners thousands of dollars

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — Burst pipes and trees down on a fence caused thousands of dollars in damage for Georgia homeowners. But when they filed home insurance claims they got stuck with big bills.

Channel 2 consumer investigator Justin Gray uncovered the tactics some insurance companies are using to avoid paying claims.

Homeowner insurance costs are up 55% since 2019 according to a study by a major insurance broker. But what happens when you need that coverage you pay for each month?

“All these trees came over all of them landing here on the fence,” said Linda Byams.

When a series of trees tumbled down on her DeKalb County home threatening a neighbor’s house, the first thing Byams did was call Allstate.

“They came literally the next day,” said Byams.

Allstate approved the $13,500 of work on the phone and by email in writing.

“They did all of the work. My claim was closed July 13th,” said Byams.

A year later, a collection notice arrived in the mail from a debt collector for the full amount that was supposed to have been paid long ago.

Allstate had gone back and denied the claim retroactively.

“It’s either yes, this is approved in black and white and you stand by what you say or not. Otherwise, why do we have insurance?” asked Byams.

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“The initial pipe burst was here,” said a DeKalb County homeowner who didn’t want to show her face.

But her gutted house tells the story. It’s down to the studs.

“I’ve had to continue to pay the insurance and the mortgage for a house that I cannot live in,” she said.

It’s been torn apart for two years since two pipes burst. A restoration company charged $120,000 for the tear out. Rebuilding would be at least another $140,000.

State Farm though said in a final decision letter that their damage estimate is just $5,500. They cut a check for only $1,400 after deductibles.

“This has destroyed my life. It’s put me in financial ruins at this point,” she said.

You can donate to help her raise money to pay the restoration company here.

“So, these are the repairs we made that I had to pay for,” said Shantelle Brown as she showed Gray her bathroom.

She was given the go-ahead by Allstate to demo her bathroom after a pipe burst in the wall behind the shower. But then Allstate sent her a letter saying the cause of the pipe burst was wear and tear not covered by her policy.

“That wasn’t what the initial diagnosis was,” said Brown.

She wonders if just about any damage could be written off by an insurance company as wear and tear.

“If you say I’m in good hands, what good hands am I in when you left me hanging?” asked Brown.

We took these complaints from Channel 2 Action News viewers to Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King. His office investigates each and every complaint they get from a Georgia consumer.

“We become the arbiters of what is reasonable,” said King.

The commissioner’s office investigates about 10,000 cases per year. Since 2019, they’ve recovered $91 million for Georgia consumers from insurance companies.

“If an insurance company promised something and didn’t fulfill their promise and we’re going to hold an insurance company accountable,” said King.

Months after Linda Byams’ repairs were completed and the claim had been closed, she got a strange call out of the blue from an Allstate supervisor.

“And said he wasn’t supposed to do that and we’re only going to pay for one tree. And I was like ‘What do you mean? What, what are you talking about? What? You’re going to reopen this claim after you agree to pay for it and I had the work done,’” said Byams.

After Channel 2 Action News reached out to Allstate, they contacted Byams, apologized and agreed to pay the invoice as it was originally approved.

Allstate told us Shantelle Brown’s claim was denied after a thorough review.

State Farm said they can’t comment on the other cause because it’s active litigation.

Commissioner King said consumers can protect themselves by really knowing their policy -- what they are buying and don’t rely on apps or agents.

King also said when it comes time to file a claim, be in control and don’t have the contractor negotiating with the insurance company or you could be the one left with the bill.

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