Questions about appraisal in Colorado

A process written into most property policies for settling a disagreement about the amount of a covered loss. Each side appoints an appraiser, the appraisers select an umpire, and an award signed by any two of the three sets the amount. It is not a lawsuit, not arbitration and not mediation.

What it costs to repair or replace the damaged property, item by item, at prices for your area, with depreciation applied as the policy provides. In Colorado the panel may also decide what caused the damage when that is in dispute. It does not interpret the policy or decide whether a loss is covered.

In Colorado, yes. When the disagreement is whether a roof shows hail impact or wear, or whether an interior stain came from the storm or a plumbing leak, the appraisers and umpire may decide that as part of determining the amount of loss. What they may not do is interpret the policy: whether an exclusion applies, whether notice was timely, or what the policy owes.

No. A real estate appraiser values a property for a sale or a loan. An insurance appraiser determines the cost of repairing damage under a policy. Different license, different purpose.

Under most Colorado policies, either the policyholder or the insurer, in writing, once there is a disagreement about amount. Look in the conditions section of your policy for the paragraph headed Appraisal.

On the amount, yes. The carrier pays the award according to the policy, less what it already paid and the deductible. Courts set awards aside only in narrow circumstances, such as an appraiser who was not impartial or an award that decided coverage.

No. Colorado's Division of Insurance expects appraisers to be fair and competent, and the Colorado Supreme Court held in Owners Insurance v. Dakota Station II (2019) that a party-appointed appraiser may not act as an advocate. An appraiser found to be advocating can jeopardize the award. A fair, documented estimate is what makes it hold.

Select your appraiser first. Then send the carrier a short written demand citing the appraisal provision, stating that you dispute the amount of loss, and naming your appraiser with contact details. Send it in a way you can prove was received. We provide the wording.

Most policies say 20 days from the demand. Some say a reasonable time. If the carrier is slow, a follow-up letter usually resolves it. A carrier that refuses a proper demand is generally in breach of its own policy.

We propose agreeing on an umpire at the start, before the appraisers compare estimates. Most policies say the appraisers select the umpire, and if they cannot agree within a set time either side may ask a court to appoint one.

Almost always. We inspect the property ourselves, usually jointly with the carrier's appraiser so both see the same conditions on the same day.

The carrier's estimate and every payment or denial letter, your contractor's estimate, the policy declarations page, photographs, and any roof measurement or engineering report. The full policy helps. Weather data for the date of loss helps on hail and wind.

Emergency repairs to prevent further damage should happen right away; photograph the conditions first. Permanent repairs can proceed, but once the roof is removed the appraisers are working from photographs, so most people wait or at least complete a joint inspection first.

No. You may be present for the inspection if you wish. The appraisers' meetings and any umpire session do not require you.

When the carrier has accepted that there is a covered loss, paid something or agreed to, and the two sides disagree about how much. Repair versus replace, missing items, pricing and additional damage the carrier will not add are all amount disputes.

Yes. A partial payment is the most common starting point. Appraisal sets the full amount; the carrier owes the difference.

No, but the difference between the estimates should justify the process. We will say so if it does not.

It depends on the reason. A denial that says the damage is wear and tear, pre-existing or not storm related is a causation question, and a Colorado appraisal panel may decide it. A denial that rests on a policy exclusion, late notice or another coverage ground is for the claims process or an attorney.

It happens. The carrier may dispute both what the storm damaged and whether a policy provision limits what it owes. The damage and cost questions go to the appraisal panel; the policy questions stay with the claims process or counsel. We work alongside the policyholder's attorney on files like that, and the award is drafted so it does not reach into policy interpretation.

Five usual reasons: scope (repair versus replace, slopes or elevations left off), missing items (underlayment, flashing, ventilation, detach and reset, code items), quantities (waste factors, square counts), pricing (the estimate's price date and region versus what suppliers charge now), and depreciation.

Carriers generally use line-item estimating platforms with regional price lists that update monthly. We prepare estimates in the platforms carriers use, so the comparison is line for line rather than total against total.

Items current building code requires that were not there before: underlayment, drip edge, ventilation, decking replacement. Whether they are paid depends on the policy's ordinance or law coverage. The appraiser identifies and prices them; the policy decides whether they are owed.

Deteriorated decking, a second layer, damaged skylights. Photograph it before it is covered. It can be added to the estimate if found before the award; after the award it is usually a supplemental claim.

The award typically shows replacement cost value and actual cash value. The carrier pays actual cash value first and recoverable depreciation when the work is done, per the policy. Appraisal fixes both figures; it does not change how the policy pays them.

Roofing is the most common Colorado appraisal: hail and wind, repair versus replace, partial approvals and matching.

All part of the same loss. Soft-metal damage, screen damage and chalking are often where the carrier's estimate is thinnest.

Interior repair from a roof leak or pipe burst is appraisable. Contents and additional living expense can be, depending on the policy and whether the carrier treats them as part of the amount of loss. We review the wording before committing to anything.

Yes, as other structures under the policy. They are commonly omitted or underpriced on the carrier's estimate.

Matching is a frequent dispute on partial approvals: whether undamaged slopes or elevations must be replaced so the result is uniform. It is partly scope and partly policy wording. We estimate it; whether the policy owes it can be a coverage question.

Yes, under the association's master policy. The board or its management company signs the demand. We address the engagement to the board and provide written status every two weeks for meeting packets.

All appraisable. The disputes shift toward roofing system type, code items, rooftop equipment and matching across buildings.

Routinely. They handle the claim and coverage; we determine and document the amount of the loss as the independent appraiser of record.

Building by building, reconciled to the carrier's estimate by building and by trade, so the umpire can see exactly where the differences are.

The Front Range sees hail every year. Typical disputes: repair versus replacement, slopes left off, soft-metal and siding damage omitted, and whether a repair is possible on an older shingle that no longer matches.

Creased and lifted shingles the carrier proposes to reseal versus a roof that will not hold. Fences and outbuildings. Downslope wind events along the foothills.

Structural damage is straightforward. Smoke is where the disagreement usually lies: cleaning versus replacement of contents, insulation, ductwork and finishes.

Interior water damage from ice dams, collapsed gutters, structural stress. The estimate often turns on what the policy excludes versus what the damage requires.

Mountain losses carry higher labor and delivery costs and different code requirements. Regional price lists reflect some of it; the rest has to be documented.

Which storm caused the damage is a factual causation question, and in Colorado the appraisal panel may address it as part of determining the loss. Whether a particular policy period or deductible applies is a policy question for the carrier and, if needed, an attorney.

Decides only the items the two appraisers could not agree on, then signs the award with one of them. A decision-maker, not a mediator.

Usually an experienced appraiser, contractor, engineer or retired judge with no connection to either side. We serve as umpire on files where we have no conflict. Umpire services.

If the disputed items depend on the condition of the property, yes, often with both appraisers present. If they depend on pricing or method, the file may be decided on documents.

Both parties jointly, under nearly every policy.

Most policies allow either side to ask a court to appoint one after a set period, commonly 15 days. In practice two professional appraisers almost always agree on a name.

Not in Colorado. The roofing contractor law keeps contractors out of adjusting and appraisal on projects they are performing. That is why contractors refer stalled files to an independent appraiser. Working with contractors.

The estimate, inspection photographs with test squares, any roof report, and a short history of carrier contacts. The contractor's documentation of damage found during tear-off is often the most useful item in the file.

Appraisal sets the amount, not the contractor. Most homeowners keep the contractor who identified the shortfall.

No, in either direction. A financial arrangement tied to who referred the file or to the outcome would compromise the appraiser's impartiality and could compromise the award.

A public adjuster is licensed to negotiate and settle the claim on the policyholder's behalf. An appraiser is appointed after an amount dispute and must be impartial. Different roles; many claims involve both.

Sometimes, but it gives the carrier an impartiality argument. Appointing an independent appraiser removes it. We are glad to serve as a public adjuster's overflow and conflict appraiser.

Counsel handles coverage and demand strategy. We prepare the estimate, compare it with the carrier's, meet the opposing appraiser, and present the disputed items to the umpire. Status every two weeks or on your schedule.

Appraisal is designed to avoid that. If a file later goes to litigation, our estimate and photo report are prepared to be used, and expert engagement is discussed separately.

Under most policies each party retains and pays its own appraiser, and the umpire is retained jointly. The terms of our engagement are set out in the engagement letter before any work begins.

Typically 30 to 90 days from the demand letter to a signed award. The carrier's window to name an appraiser, scheduling the inspection, and whether an umpire has to rule are the variables.

Almost always, by a year or more. It is also narrower: it fixes the amount and nothing else.

Policies set time limits for suit and sometimes for demanding appraisal. Invoke sooner rather than later, and ask an attorney about the suit limitation in your policy.

It applies the policy to the award: actual cash value first, recoverable depreciation when repairs are complete, less the deductible and anything already paid.

Rare. A signed award is enforceable, and non-payment is the point at which an attorney becomes very useful.

Usually a supplemental claim to the carrier. Document it before it is covered.

There is no appeal. A court can set an award aside only for narrow reasons such as partiality, fraud or the award reaching into policy interpretation.

No. It produces a fair, documented figure. Sometimes that figure is close to the carrier's. We will say so at the outset if that appears likely.

Not in Colorado. An appraiser who advocates risks the award. What you want is an appraiser whose estimate is documented well enough that the other side cannot argue with it.

Appraisal is a right in the policy the carrier sold you. Using it is not a basis for cancellation.

Mediation is non-binding discussion. Arbitration decides the whole dispute. Appraisal is binding on amount only, conducted by appraisers who inspect and estimate rather than lawyers who argue.

Weeks to a few months. Litigation is what takes years.

Construction and estimating experience, fluency in the software carriers use, knowledge of Colorado codes and pricing, a written engagement letter, and a willingness to say no. Ask whether they have worked the carrier side. Ask which umpires they have worked with.

A great deal. An appraiser the carrier's appraiser already knows shortens the discussion, and an umpire gives more weight to a professional estimate than to a contractor's bid.

Local pricing, local code and local weather all matter. A Front Range appraiser who inspects in person has an advantage over a remote desk review.

An independent property insurance appraisal firm in Loveland, Colorado. The principal is a licensed independent adjuster and certified property loss appraiser and umpire who is appointed by carriers and by policyholders. About the firm.

Neither. We do not negotiate claims or give legal advice. We determine the amount of loss and document it so that it holds.

the Western United States.

Email the carrier's estimate and the contractor's to Appraisals@HeidmannAndAssociates.com, or use the request form. We reply within one business day.