“I am here to help you and get you everything you deserve to get.” That is the script and the first lie Louisiana flood insurance adjusters will say. They will not tell this dirty secret to any flood policyholder, but it is being played out by the thousands of claims of desperate people in Louisiana who paid their premiums and are hoping for relief. Everybody in the National Flood Insurance Program knows it, but nobody will say it is true for risk of losing lots of money.
Half-truths told for deception are the worst of lies because they lead others to believe another reality. The National Flood adjuster is instructed by managers to tell the flood policyholder this lie in the disguise of a half-truth:
“I get paid more money when I write a higher estimate. I am on your side to write an estimate for as much as possible.”
In truth, the National Flood adjuster signs a contract that makes him agree that if he writes an estimate for more than what is owed, he has to pay the money back for the overpayment out of his own pocket. No National Flood Adjuster ever says this truth to the policyholder because it would obviously indicate a bias to underpay a claim at the risk of overpayment which would come from the flood adjuster’s own pocket.
Those National Flood adjusters are motivated to make lots money by making as many estimates as possible but none being for too much. This is because they are not managed, measured and paid on success not by how accurate an estimate for a claim is. but he is paid on a percentage of the total estimates so long as the individual estimate is not too much—there is no (I mean zero) penalty for writing an estimate that is for too little than what is owed. The only penalties are for paying too much. So, if a Flood Adjuster can write eight inaccurate estimates for amounts that are not for too much in a day versus three that are very accurate but may risk being seen as being for too much by management or a FEMA auditor, getting paid for eight on a percentage is a lot more than being paid on three. The loser is the policyholder. This is an obvious dirty secret and nobody at FEMA seems to care.
For those that have missed some of our warnings about what is really going on with claims in the National Flood Program, I suggest you read the following:
- FEMA Whistleblowers Speak-Out at Washington, DC Hearing
- Why The Tom Brady Decision is Similar to Insurance Altered Engineering and Damage Reports
- FEMA Flood Back to Slow Mo with Old Guard in Place
- Rigsby Sisters Win Qui Tam Appeal Regarding Fraudulent Handling of Katrina Flood Claims
- Kieserman Calls FEMA’s Flood Program a "Melting Iceberg"
- Kieserman Appointed to Lead FEMA Superstorm Sandy Investigation of WYO Claims Handling
- Superstorm Sandy Draft Estimates of Damage Ordered Produced–Have They Been Altered as Well?
- FEMA to Re-Open and Review 144,000 Sandy Flood Claims
- Coast Guardsman Takes Control of Superstorm Sandy Claims
- WYO’s Want Release From Criminal Liability and WYO Attorneys Warned of Sanctions
The sad part is that after all this corruption, FEMA and Congress have not indicated that anything has changed. There have been no new regulations or laws that prevent the same thing from happening again. A few managers have been terminated, but the status quo is in place.
So, when a FEMA regulated National Flood Claims adjuster tells you the first sentence in this post, just remember he is really telling you:
“I am from the government. Don’t worry, I am here to help you.”
Positive Thought of The Day
Cautious, careful people, always casting about to preserve their reputations… can never effect a reform.
—Susan B. Anthony
And an uplifting song about flood:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=EfAhpX_wIBk%3Frel%3D0
