The book that insurance adjusters don’t want you to know about, Secrets of the Insurance Game: What You Need to Know About Property Damage Claims, by Sean Scott, has been released and is already raising eyebrows.

Author and disaster recovery expert Sean M. Scott is a restoration contractor who has spent nearly four decades in the construction and restoration business. Throughout his career Scott has worked on literally thousands of property damage claims and has witnessed firsthand the trauma people experience when their homes are damaged or destroyed and their most prized possessions are lost.

From wildfires, hurricanes, earthquakes, and floods, to a burst pipe, overflowing toilet or kitchen fire, disasters come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Once an insurance claim is filed, things often spiral out of control and this is where survivors can evolve into victims.

In Secrets of the Insurance Game, Scott exposes many of the difficulties disaster survivors face when dealing with the insurance claim process and the unique challenges and complexities most people aren’t aware of.

Scott emphasizes that following a disaster, most people assume that their insurance policy will take care of everything. After all, crisis events are the reason why we pay for insurance in the first place -- so that our paths to normalcy will be quick and relatively painless. Unfortunately, this is not always the case and all too often, policyholders find themselves unable to rebuild, forcing them to abandon their homes and start over. What people don’t realize is that insurance adjusters have another set of rules they use when settling a claim that is not spelled out in the policy language. Once a claim is filed, the agent passes the baton off to an adjuster and here is where the real trouble can begin. The book also explains the role restoration contractors play and what to be aware of when selecting restoration professionals, public adjusters, or legal representation.

“I wrote Secrets of the Insurance Game to remove the mask of mystery that shrouds the insurance claim and restoration processes,” said Scott. “Almost everyone experiences some form of property damage or loss at some point in their lives. What’s tragic is that the majority of people who go through the claims process don’t get all the benefits their policies afford them, or they find out too late that their policy was inadequate to cover all the damages.”

Secrets of the Insurance Game exposes many of the struggles families face during the claims process – even when they are fully ‘covered’ by insurance. Scott said that very few people know what to do when they’re faced with lowball repair estimates, unfair claims practices, being told “no,” or “we don’t pay for that,” etc. This often leads to legal battles, extended time of displacement, and out-of-pocket expenses to fight back against the companies they trusted to protect them.

Secrets of the Insurance Game is a compelling and serious look at everything from better understanding the role of the insurance adjuster and how to get an accurate repair estimate and inventory of your personal property; to the things your adjuster may not pay for and how to select the right contractor. The book contains a vast array of essential tips that can help make sure one disaster doesn’t turn into another.

Scott is also the author of The Red Guide to Recovery – Resource Handbook for Disaster Survivors, a disaster recovery guide endorsed by fire departments, emergency management agencies and relief organizations around the country. For more information on the Secrets of the Insurance Game or The Red Guide to Recovery, visit www.TheRedGuideToRecovery.com

Media: Copies of Secrets of the Insurance Game are now available to media for review. For more information or to arrange interviews with author Sean Scott, contact Paul Williams, at 310/569-0023, paul@medialinecommunications.com.

MediaLine CommunicationsPaul Williams, 310-569-0023paul@medialinecommunications.com