Should I Call a Public Adjuster, Contractor, or Attorney?

30-second answer

• Active emergency, water still flowing or property unsafe? Call a mitigation contractor (not a restoration AOB shop) for emergency stabilization, then call a public adjuster.
• Damage stable, no claim filed yet? Call a public adjuster for a free policy and damage review before filing.
• Claim filed and the carrier denied or underpaid? Call a public adjuster to dispute on scope, documentation, or appraisal.
• Carrier has missed Fla. Stat. 627.70131 deadlines or denied a clearly covered claim on pretext? Call a public adjuster to file a Civil Remedy Notice; bring in an attorney if the 60-day cure window expires without resolution.
• Already in litigation, or need bad-faith damages above policy limits? Call an attorney.

The full decision tree

Step 1 — Is the property currently in active loss?

Yes (water flowing, fire suppression just finished, structural collapse, electrical hazard):

1. 1Stop the loss source (shutoff, board-up, tarp).
2. 2Call your insurance carrier to open the claim — this starts the statutory clock under Fla. Stat. 627.70131.
3. 3Call a mitigation contractor for emergency stabilization. Do NOT sign an Assignment of Benefits with them; pay invoice or work directly with carrier.
4. 4Document everything (photos, video, receipts) before any cleanup.
5. 5Once stable, proceed to Step 2.

No (damage is documented and stable): proceed to Step 2.

Step 2 — Have you filed a claim with your carrier yet?

No:

• A public adjuster's free consultation is the right first call. They review your policy, the damage, and your options before you file. This costs nothing and often surfaces coverage you didn't know you had.
• Filing first and engaging a PA later is allowed, but the PA can't undo statements or estimates already in the file. Pre-filing review is materially more powerful.

Yes: proceed to Step 3.

Step 3 — Has the carrier responded to your claim?

Not yet, and we're past the 14-day Fla. Stat. 627.70131 acknowledgment window OR past the 60-day pay/deny window:

• Call a public adjuster. The carrier is in statutory non-compliance; the PA will document the breach and prepare a Civil Remedy Notice if needed.

Yes — they sent an offer or a denial: proceed to Step 4.

Step 4 — What did the carrier say?

They denied the claim entirely:

• If the denial is on coverage grounds (excluded peril, late notice, policy void): a public adjuster can still help if the denial is wrong on documentation or causation. If the denial is correctly applied to a clearly excluded loss, an attorney is unlikely to change the outcome either.
• If the denial is on causation or scope grounds (e.g., "wear and tear" instead of storm event): this is where a PA is most powerful. Counter-documentation often reverses the denial.

They paid less than you expected (lowball or scope-reduced):

• Call a public adjuster. Side-by-side estimate comparison is the standard playbook. Most underpayments are recoverable through scope documentation, appraisal demand, or supplemental claim submission.

They paid the deductible-above-net-loss amount and you have additional damage:

• Call a public adjuster about a supplemental claim under Fla. Stat. 627.70132. The 18-month window matters.

The carrier paid in full and there's no dispute:

• You don't need any of the three. Make repairs and verify the work matches the claim file.

Step 5 — When the lawyer becomes the right call

After all of the above, an attorney becomes the right call when:

• A CRN was filed and not cured within 60 days (Fla. Stat. 624.155): bad-faith litigation may be available.
• The carrier has refused to engage on a clearly covered claim despite full documentation, including PA escalation.
• You need a declaratory action to interpret an ambiguous policy term.
• You're seeking damages above the policy limit (consequential damages, attorney's fees where statutorily available, statutory bad-faith damages).
• The matter has been referred to litigation by the carrier (subrogation, defense litigation, etc.).
• Florida's one-way fee statute changes in 2022 affect when litigation is economically rational; an attorney can give you the case-specific math.

Where contractors fit (and don't)

Contractors do two things on a claim:

1. 1Emergency mitigation (board-up, water extraction, drying, tarp).
2. 2Repair work after the claim is settled and paid.

What contractors do not do:

• Negotiate the claim with the carrier.
• Prepare Xactimate estimates that compete with the carrier's estimate. (Some contractors do, but they typically can't represent you in negotiations; it's the unauthorized practice of public adjusting under Fla. Stat. 626.854.)
• Receive insurance proceeds via Assignment of Benefits unless the AOB satisfies Fla. Stat. 627.7152 — and even then, the trade-offs are significant.

Avoid the AOB-first contractor. A restoration company that walks in after a loss with an AOB-on-clipboard is solving its own collection problem, not your representation problem.

Edge cases

"I'm a condo association board member; what about us?"

Call a public adjuster with HOA/condo experience first. Master-policy coverage, special assessment recovery, and Chapter 718 fiduciary obligations make these claims structurally different from single-family homes. See the Condo / HOA Master-Policy Claims hub.

"I'm a small commercial property owner with a business interruption loss."

Public adjuster — specifically one with BI experience. Period-of-restoration accounting, lost profits documentation, and continuing-expenses tracking are not standard contractor or attorney work products.

"The carrier sent an engineer's report I disagree with."

Public adjuster. Counter-documentation (often via independent forensic engineer the PA retains) is the standard playbook.

"I signed an AOB to a contractor and now things have gone sideways."

Attorney first, then PA. AOB unwind under Fla. Stat. 627.7152 has its own legal mechanics; the PA can support the post-unwind claim handling.

"I'm worried about insurance fraud accusations from the carrier (SIU referral, EUO request)."

Both. The PA continues representation on the claim; the attorney handles the SIU/EUO process. Don't go to an EUO without representation.

How Ocean Point routes intake

Every Ocean Point intake goes through a claim-stage screen: new claim, denied, underpaid, supplemental, appraisal, or "not sure." The screen routes you to the right service path. If your matter is genuinely better served by counsel, we tell you and refer.