A year ago, Farmers Insurance Group settled a $32 million lawsuit filed by a Texas family that alleged that toxic mold had caused severe health problems. In this case the jury found that the insurer failed to pay for timely repairs needed for a water leak, which allowed mold to grow like a culture plate, making the house uninhabitable.
Since then, mold-related insurance claims in Texas have jumped about 600 percent, and homeowners’ premiums have risen 20 percent.
Many insurance companies will cover mold as a result of water damage incidents e.g. a tree falls on your roof causing flooding and subsequent mold growth after the incident.
Another example, if you’re on vacation and a plumbing line broke in your house pouring 1,000’s of gallons in your home causing significant damage. The repair and replacement for the water line break is not a big deal if it’s remediated quickly. If the water is not effectively cleaned up within 24 - 48 hours after the incident the home has the potential to become a huge culture plate.
The resulting water damage on wetted drywall could include organisms such as Stachbotrys chartarum, a mycotoxin producing fungi or Pseudomonas (sp.) an aerobic, oxidase-positive bacillus that can create endotoxin production which is associated with many respiratory ailments and diseases related to water damaged indoor environments" said Dr. Rajiv Sahay, Laboratory Director at Pure Air Control Services.
Insurance companies don’t want to cover mold damage today due to the run on mold. They’re claiming that they lose money with these mold incidents and they want to limit the mold side of the equation. In fact, recently we have seen many insurance carriers exclude mold from their policy in its entirety.
If you read the fine print in your insurance policy you may find out that you are not covered for mold damage resulting from a water incident. They may cover the water damage incident and resulting loss, but if mold has grown as a result of the incident you may not be covered.
"In the worse case scenario, if mold and bacteria has taken over your home due to the lack of timeliness of the insurance agent, carrier and/or the restoration cleanup company, the cost to fix a home environmentally will be 10 to 100 fold over conventional cleanup methods. These mold remediation projects require full containment of the areas affected, require trained personnel in OSHA compliance procedures and a regimented remediation protocol in order to successfully remove the contamination," said Mr. Wozniak.
"In addition, performing a limited baseline test before and after remediation is essential to the projects successful completion. If a baseline test is not performed the consumer will never know if the mold was effectively removed. By then it may be too late," Mr. Alan Wozniak, president of Pure Air Services said.
A restoration firm will blow dry water damaged carpets, dry the interstitial wall spaces with blowers, dehumidify the localized area or even rip out water damaged drywall, but if this is not done in a timely fashion this water nutrient for mold will allow these microorganisms to proliferate beyond the restoration firms ability and the insured pocketbook. These once dormant microorganisms will now have the ability to thrive allowing a once-insurable water related claim to grow into a mold claim and a health-related claim. This is one for the attorneys to decide.
For more information contact:
Alan L. Wozniak, CIAQP
(800) 422-7873 ext. 802
iaq@pureaircontrols.com
