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Storm Hits all Hawaiian Islands: Pushes My Leak Claim Back?

By
Real Estate Agent with Liberty Homes RS-#62825

WowThis is where it all started:    Condo/Townhouse Living in Hawaii..........and A Water Leak In early October we had a leak in our bathroom which caused us much pain and heartache with holes in my bedroom closet (bathroom on the other side) and still not finding the leak.

In the end we had to demolish the bathroom (whoopeee!) bath/shower and get all new plumbing. Don't get me wrong because we are VERY happy with our new bath!

During the renovation I wrote:Hawaii Townhouse Living... Responsible Homeowners Take Steps to Protect I wrote how it is so important to make sure you are responsible when you have a leak because it could affect your neighbors and cause damage to their unit as well.

Well, it's been over two months since our insurance man came to our house and assessed the damage and he had told us that they have to first inquire with our Association's Insurance Company because we could not get to the plumbing without tearing the whole surround cheap fiberglass walls out. On top of everything else, the fiberglass bath that came with it when we bought it has a weight limit of 250 pounds. Do you all realize how many individuals are over 250 pounds? My husband is....and the bathtub cracked in a couple of places as well.

So now what? We had a pretty bad storm from Tuesday and it finally subsided with the heavy winds although we still have a lot of rain and flooding. We had a lot of damage with power lines down, big trees coming down with 60mph winds and lots of flooding. And this was throughout all our Hawaiian Islands.

I called my insurance guy yesterday and of course his voice mail says he'll be out of the office for four hours due to having to assess many claims because of the storm. He finally calls me at 4:30pm and he sounded really tired. He explains that because of the storm he did not get a chance to check on the Association's Insurance Co.

Waipio GentrySo, what do I say? "Uh, our leak came before the storm and in fact this was two months ago already". He apologizes and I am polite in my tone of voice although I proceeded to tell him that we just need an answer and if they are not going to pay something than what is the alternative?

Our insurance guy says, "Then we will take care of it".  Okay, so what's the problem? I did keep on him and let him know that we need to at least hear something or other and that this has been going on long enough. The poor guy sounded beat and I also let him know he sounded like it. That I sympathized with him and still.....

Today? Gee, I wish I wasn't so hard on him and when he calls me this afternoon I will tell him so.

What was I was going through? Severe exhaustion. I have not slept well since Monday night. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights were filled with storm pounding and my husband had to fly to the mainland for a conference early morning Wednesday. We had no power and I had to drive him to the airport in storm conditions and NO street lamps! I could not sleep well the last couple of nights....no husband. Sob.

The dog was miserable without Gary and I am exhausted. Gary comes in tonight. Thanks goodness.

The moral of this story? No matter what we're going through or what kind of day we're having don't take it out on the whole world. 

 

Posted by

                                                       

 

Celeste "Sally" Cheeseman  is a Realtor-Associate® and Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) with Century 21 Liberty Homes in Mililani, Hawaii. With a sharp understanding that a listening ear is the key to a client's needs  she serves the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and all Hawaii Military Relocations, Hawaii Retirees, Hawaii Job Transfers and Hawaii Residents, Home Buyers and Sellers.

 

 © 2007-2015 Celeste "Sally" Cheeseman's

Hawaii Real Estate and Relocation Blog.

All rights reserved.

     

 


 

 

Comments (53)

Gary L. Waters Broker Associate, Bucci Realty
Bucci Realty, Inc. - Melbourne, FL
Eighteen Years Experience in Brevard County
Sally - Rough week....hope it turns more positive starting today! Sometimes others end up on the wrong end of our stress... It is unfortunate but we, yes even you, are human!
Dec 07, 2007 10:54 PM
Brian Block
RE/MAX Allegiance, Managing Broker/Branch Vice President - McLean, VA
Northern Virginia & D.C. Real Estate

Sally, glad to hear that your husband is coming home so that you can sleep soundly at night.  Good moral to your story.  And of course, patience is a virtue.

I can understand how tough and frustrating it can be to try to get a problem with your home resolved.  We have to remember that others may have bigger problems.  My parents owned a company in Florida that came in after big storms working with the insurance companies to repair home damage.  They also did general home repair and restoration work.  3 years ago after a big hurricane in Florida, they were swamped with emergency calls from the disaster.  Yet, they still received calls from potential clients with minor problems such as a leak under the sink, etc.  Their typical response went like this:

"When you look up, can you see the sky and clouds from your kitchen?"

"Well, no.  I don't understand" 

"Do you still have a roof?" 

"Yes."

"We'll be there to fix your kitchen sink after we repair the 42 people who have called us with severe roof damage." 

"Oh!  Yeah.  I guess our problem can wait."

Kinda put things in perspective.

I'm sure your bathroom will be fixed in time. Glad you didn't have any major damage from the storm.

Dec 07, 2007 11:00 PM
Melissa Grant
A Serendipity World - Greenbackville, VA
The Law of Attraction In Life & Business
Sally- after going through 2 Hurricanes in Fla I know how you feel ! So sorry that you are having to go through this..try to get some sleep, you see things a lot clearer ! Thoughts and prayers are with you !
Dec 07, 2007 11:52 PM
Tom Plant
WINEormous.com - Murrieta, CA
Sally - The important thing is you realized you came off too stern and you want to apologize. That makes a world of difference. So happy for you that Gary will be home. Go get some sleep!
Dec 08, 2007 12:51 AM
Katie Landon Lewes
Jack Lingo REALTORS - Lewes, DE
REALTORS
Sally you waited 2 months to long.  We had a storm over the summer here in Delaware and it was real bad it destroyed most of my garden and we had about 6 trees down, my husband called the insurance company on Monday by Thursday we had a check.  Don't feel quilty maybe they need to hire an assistant for you insurance person. 
Dec 08, 2007 03:27 AM
Kaye Thomas
Real Estate West - Manhattan Beach, CA
e-PRO, Manhattan Beach CA
Sally- Nothing worse then waiting for the insurance adjuster.. I know you will say the perfect thing today to make him feel appreciated.. I think we got your storm yesterday.. we needed the rain.
Dec 08, 2007 03:52 AM
Julie Neerings~Lifting Hearts ♥ Building Dreams~
Agent Referral - Salt Lake City, UT
Sally-Now you can hug Gary and all will be good.  Sometimes it is difficult to get past the things that are going on in our lives and make sure that doesn't come across in the way we are communicating with others.  You have a good soul and it will all be made right. Have a wonderful day my friend. 
Dec 08, 2007 06:18 AM
Celeste "SALLY" Cheeseman
Liberty Homes - Mililani, HI
(RA) AHWD CRS ePRO OAHU HAWAII REAL ESTATE

Randy: Yeah... but now that Gary's home he can hop on the insurance guy.

Maggie: He's home!!!

Mathew: Bathroom's been done...waiting for the insurance guy.

Dec 08, 2007 07:23 AM
Celeste "SALLY" Cheeseman
Liberty Homes - Mililani, HI
(RA) AHWD CRS ePRO OAHU HAWAII REAL ESTATE

Gary: So, better today....better tomorrow

Brian: huh?  My bathroom was done back in October....we paid upfront only for our insurance co. to be lagging...

Melissa: Having a beautiful Saturday....rain stopped.. and breezy and had a good nights sleep.

Tom: :)  :)  :)  New day ...smile..smile...smile....rested

 

 

Dec 08, 2007 07:27 AM
Celeste "SALLY" Cheeseman
Liberty Homes - Mililani, HI
(RA) AHWD CRS ePRO OAHU HAWAII REAL ESTATE

Katie: Yeah....we are in a townhouse and they want to fight with the association insurance co....I say pay me...and go fight with them.

Kaye: Great about the rain...I knew it'd come your way :)

Julie:  Oh...believe me...hugging and it was sooo nice to be comfortable....and sleep.

Dec 08, 2007 07:28 AM
Midori Miller
Talk 2 Midori, LLC - Daytona Beach, FL
Online Marketing For Real Estate Professionals
Sally-great message and so true..I try very hard to remain calm...most often you'll get the results that you want and without crushing another human who is simply doing their job. 
Dec 08, 2007 08:58 AM
Elaine Stewart
Elaine Stewart is the #1 Individual RE/MAX Agent for 13 years straight in the Coachella Valley. (760) 668-2399 - Palm Desert, CA
RE/MAX All-Pro
Great wisdom, insurance claims can be stressful, I just went through two of them... hope it all works out for you.
Dec 08, 2007 09:26 AM
Celeste "SALLY" Cheeseman
Liberty Homes - Mililani, HI
(RA) AHWD CRS ePRO OAHU HAWAII REAL ESTATE

Hey Midori!: No kidding....The exhaustion got the best of me....Gary's home and got a good night's sleep...nice talking to you again :)

Elaine: Me too! Thanks!

Dec 08, 2007 10:13 AM
Timothy Schwartz
Century 21 Mack Morris Iris Lurie - Marlboro Twp, NJ
The glass is half full.  You got a new bath, yippeee.  Thanks for commenting on my blog.
Dec 08, 2007 01:47 PM
Celeste "SALLY" Cheeseman
Liberty Homes - Mililani, HI
(RA) AHWD CRS ePRO OAHU HAWAII REAL ESTATE
That's right Tim! Thanks for popping by....I happened to go into the group and there you were!
Dec 08, 2007 02:06 PM
Lysa Napolitano
Daytona Beach, FL

Sally, what is it about cocker spaniels named Shadow and them getting depressed when their daddys leave? That's why I let the ex have our Shadow. She would get like your Shadow did when the ex would go away.

I went through 3 hurricanes back to back in 04 (about the time I told the ex to take a hike) a total of 11 days w/o power total from the 3. (the last one was 12 hours or so w/o power) I didn't let it get to me though, because my roof was still there along with all of my walls and windows. I was lucky complared to the others in the area.

Dec 09, 2007 08:44 AM
Lisa Ryan
Callaway Henderson Sotheby's International Realty - Montgomery, NJ
Selling Princeton,West Windsor and Montgomery Town
Sally~ don't be so hard on yourself, you seem overwhelmed with the insurance run around, the bad storm and you husband's travel.  Hopefully everything will resolve itself next week.
Dec 09, 2007 12:08 PM
Celeste "SALLY" Cheeseman
Liberty Homes - Mililani, HI
(RA) AHWD CRS ePRO OAHU HAWAII REAL ESTATE
Lysa:  Ah...the worst is over....and back to normal :)
Dec 09, 2007 12:47 PM
Ginger S
Wilkinson & Associates, Wilmington NC - Wilmington, NC
Wilmington NC Real Estate & Relocation~

Sally, You had a stress overload for sure. You make a goos point . I strive to be extra kind to everyone.. but f a there have been times me when I am at the end of my rope... and a telemarker calls,, and I have not been too pleasant. I have even surprised myself with my attitude. Good reminder

G inger

Dec 09, 2007 03:47 PM
Celeste "SALLY" Cheeseman
Liberty Homes - Mililani, HI
(RA) AHWD CRS ePRO OAHU HAWAII REAL ESTATE
Ginger.....I have hung up on them...but I surely don't yell or anything.....the important thing is to be aware of how we affect others :)
Dec 10, 2007 02:13 AM