Advocacy in Action: Standing with clients through every claim

When people think about insurance, they often think about the policy itself: coverage limits, deductibles, and premiums. But when a loss occurs, the value of insurance often depends on having experienced professionals by your side to help you navigate a complex claims process.

Claims could involve multiple inspections, technical reports, policy interpretation, and ongoing discussions among insurers, adjusters, contractors, and clients. That's where our experienced dedicated private client claims advocacy team comes in. While every claim is different and outcomes depend on the facts and policy language, our role is to help clients understand their coverage, coordinate resources, and advocate on their behalf when questions or disputes arise.

Read on for three real situations where we guided our clients through difficult claims and helped provide the support they needed when it mattered most.

From submerged to settled

A storm that struck Vermont shortly after boating season began left one client's vessel submerged, starting what became a months-long claims process.

The insurer initially estimated approximately $135,000 in damages. The owner disagreed with the surveyor's assessment, and the matter became a contested claim. Rather than accepting the first assessment, our claims advocacy team remained actively involved from start to finish.

Working closely with the client, we:

• Coordinated transportation to a manufacturer-authorized repair facility.
• Helped facilitate multiple inspections after equipment removal.
• Worked with repair specialists and the insurance carrier to ensure the vessel received a complete evaluation.
• Continued discussions as additional damage became apparent.

Ultimately, the vessel was determined to be a total loss, and our client received a settlement of $345,000. In this case, our coordination, communication, and persistence helped support a more favorable outcome for our client.

Turning a "no" into another look

Sometimes a “no” is the first step to getting a “yes.” When a client in New Jersey experienced water damage in a finished basement, the insurance carrier denied coverage.

A field claim executive and a senior claim advisor teamed up to dig into the specifics: engineering reports, repair estimates, photographs, and the policy language itself. After reviewing the documentation, the team believed an exception to a policy exclusion may apply. They prepared and submitted an appeal to the carrier, outlining their analysis and supporting documentation.

The carrier subsequently withdrew the denial and provided partial coverage for remediation costs.

While appeals don't always change outcomes, carefully evaluating claim decisions and policy provisions can uncover opportunities that might otherwise be overlooked.

Mitigation that improved insurability and resilience

Sometimes advocacy starts before a claim is even filed. In California, where wildfire exposure created significant insurance challenges, we helped a client who had struggled to secure coverage for two years reduce risk and strengthen resilience.

As the client finished a home remodel, our team provided guidance on wildfire mitigation. We recommended installing:

• Ember-resistant venting
• A Class-A rated roof
• A 0–5 foot “lean, clean, and green” zone around the home, reducing materials that could catch embers
• Additional improvements aligned with wildfire risk-reduction best practices

With those upgrades in place, we helped the client secure an insurance policy with a carrier in June 2024.

Then came the real test. In January 2025, wildfires hit the area, and the client’s home survived. Nearby, the outcome was different: homes across the street and several others in the surrounding area were lost.

No mitigation plan can guarantee a home will be spared. But stories like this show why mitigation matters: it can help clients improve readiness, support insurability, and strengthen resilience before disaster strikes.

More than claims specialists

A claim is rarely just about damaged property. It may involve relocations, disrupted routines, family heirlooms, difficult decisions, and significant financial consequences.

Just as important as the outcome is your experience throughout the process. When a loss occurs, you’ll often need more than technical claim support—you’ll need empathy, clarity, responsiveness, and a trusted advisor who is there to help you understand what to expect at each stage of the claims process. Our claims advocacy team works to make the process more manageable by helping you report claims, answering coverage questions, providing timely updates, and coordinating next steps so you can move forward with greater confidence during what is often a stressful and uncertain time.

Our goal is to help you move through those moments with experienced guidance, thoughtful advocacy, and clear communication—whether that means coordinating inspections, reviewing policy language, or pursuing additional avenues to help reach a resolution. When the unexpected happens, the value of a trusted advisor isn't measured only by the policy you purchased; it's reflected in the people who stand beside you after the loss.