FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Cold weather means more insurance claims, warns Florida public adjuster
Florida public adjuster Tutwiler and Associates advises property owners to remember the importance of fire safety and avoid common fire hazards during our cold season.
December 8, 2010 / TAMPA, Fla. /
As Florida property and business owners now endure their share of cold weather, licensed public adjusters caution them to remember that fire danger consistently rises as the temperature drops.
Space heaters appear to be making a comeback this month throughout Florida homes and businesses, and often play a role in fire losses during the state's coldest--and driest--days. Tutwiler and Associates, the certified public adjusters who operate in 10 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands, recommend that property owners minimize their use of unconventional temporary heating methods, which often result in electrical overloads and fires. This happens due to space heaters' proximity to flammable items, like clothing, bedding and curtains.
"People should remember to check the appliances they rarely use throughout the year," says Charles R. "Dick" Tutwiler, founder and CEO of Florida certified public adjuster firm Tutwiler and Associates. "Look to be sure that electric heaters feature a safety compliance certification label and automatic safety switch, and never use an extension cord to hook up a portable heater."
Circuit overloads have also proven to be common cold-weather mishaps as homeowners increase their use of electricity, lights and heat during the holidays. Adequate, first-party property coverage for the winter holiday season is essential to covering a fire loss in a timely manner, Tutwiler says.
Tutwiler and Associates often experiences an uptick in residential and commercial fire losses that could have been avoided by a simple check of heaters, electrical systems and smoke alarm batteries. Perhaps the best idea is to educate your children on these annual cold-weather routines, says the certified public adjuster.
For more information, please visit www.PublicAdjuster.com.
CONTACT:
Tutwiler and Associates
Email:
Phone: (800) 321-4488
For more information, please visit www.PublicAdjuster.com
About Tutwiler and Associates: Tutwiler and Associates is a firm of public adjusters licensed in 10 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands specializing in commercial and residential property loss adjusting. With well in excess of $113 million in client success stories over a 27-year history, the Florida public adjusters work exclusively on behalf of policyholders to help them achieve the maximum settlement amounts they can fairly and honestly recover based on their loss and their policy provisions. Professional help from the adjusters at Tutwiler and Associates can help clients obtain a fair recovery under their policy. The Gulf Coast based public adjuster firm is committed to public service and strives to educate its clients about commercial and residential windstorm and hurricane losses, flood damage, fire, smoke and water damage, collapse, hidden decay and mold losses, sinkholes, loss of stock, and business interruption.