TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Resident Disputes Sinkhole Estimates

ADVERTISEMENT

By JULIA FERRANTE, The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 30, 2007

HOLIDAY - Matthew Boitano first noticed the problem in the bathroom, when he sat on the toilet, and it began to rock.

Then one day his front door got stuck as he pulled it toward the inside wall, and the wooden columns in front of his house shifted with a gentle tug.

'I can start to feel now there's a high spot here,' Boitano said as he pulled his foot back across the tile floor during a recent interview at his home in Holiday Lake Estates. 'This tile was laid two years ago.'

Boitano, 31, and his wife, Grace, 25, filed a claim with Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the state's insurer of last resort, in February, after a neighbor at Dartmouth Drive suggested they have their property inspected for sinkholes. A half-dozen other residents on their block had filed similar claims - some receiving payouts of more than $100,000.

The Boitanos had their single-story, cement block home inspected, and a geologist determined they did, indeed, sit above a sinkhole, but the estimated repairs were about half as much as their neighbors', according to a report from BCI Engineers & Scientists.

Matthew Boitano was puzzled. He reviewed the sinkhole investigation reports for his next-door neighbor and the house next to that. Both reports seemed to show the houses had less damage than his.

Pasco County - with its prevalent soft limestone and clay base - has the dubious distinction of being part of 'sinkhole alley,' an area of several counties prone to ground settlement and voids. The sinkholes range from small depressions to larger gaping holes, although typically they are not the type to swallow homes.

Sinkhole claims have increased in recent years in part because some older homes have begun to reveal shoddy or substandard construction, and word has spread that insurers will pay for repairs, experts say.

Some lawyers also have targeted homeowners with billboard advertisements and door hangers offering 'help,' noted Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, who has made sinkhole reform a priority.

In 2001, Citizens paid $180,000 in sinkhole claims, according to spokesman Rocky Scott.

In 2005, the insurer paid close to $45 million. Of the 1,067 sinkhole claims Citizens is handling this year, 510 are in Pasco, 281 are in Orange County, 158 are in Hillsborough County and 82 are in Pinellas County.

The county with the next highest number of sinkhole claims is Miami-Dade, which has seven.

Getting A Second Opinion

An engineer from state-sanctioned BCI Engineers & Scientists concluded in a report that a thick base of grouting would be needed to secure the Boitanos' home. The estimated cost of repairs: $54,900.

Boitano requested a second inspection, and a geologist from MCD of Central Florida agreed with BCI's conclusions in an Aug. 30 letter. The geologist, Matthew L. Cain, recommended an alternative: a more shallow base of grouting and underpins along with a steel support beam. The estimated cost: $58,000.

The geologist who inspected the next-door neighbor's home estimated repairs at more than $100,000.

The neighbor next to that, Bill Feagley, said two engineers told him he probably did not have a sinkhole, but his insurance company determined he was at risk and paid the entire insured value of his home: $106,000.

Boitano, who paid $50,000 for his home in 2002 and has seen his homeowners insurance bills increase from $900 to $3,600 per year since then, said he is more concerned about getting the damage repaired right than the amount of the payout.

In addition to the problems inside the home, a spider web of cracks has spread through his foundation, driveway and exterior walls.

'I'm paying top dollar for peace of mind and safety for my family, and now I'm not getting either one,' he said of his homeowners insurance policy. 'It's hard to sleep at night wondering what's going on. ... They're trying to save money, but they're doing it at the risk of my family. Why is mine half the cost when I have double the damage?'

Cain, the geologist who conducted the Boitanos' second inspection, is vice president of MCD, which handles about 600 cases each year, mostly in Pasco and Hernando counties.

Cain said he routinely sees varying estimates for sinkhole damage in the same neighborhoods because geology can change significantly within a small area.

'You have to take these on an individual basis,' Cain said. 'It really is case-by-case ... If we went on the basis of what a neighbor's estimate was, that negates the science of it.'

The average sinkhole damage estimate is about $55,000, Cain said, but many estimates easily can reach more than $100,000. MCD does not assess cosmetic damage, such as cracks in a home's facade.

Scott of Citizens said Boitano and others who are unhappy with their sinkhole remediation plans need to contact their insurance agent and file a complaint first.

'If an outside expert says he is entitled to a certain amount of money, Citizens will pay it,' Scott said. 'As much as insurance premiums can vary from house to house, sinkhole damage varies just as much.'

Easier To Pay Than Repair

Feagley, who lives two houses away from Boitano in Holiday Lake Estates, did not have the sinkhole damage repaired in his three-bedroom house, he said, because the cost of repairs would have been much more than the value of his home.

'I had no choice,' he said. 'The repair would have cost another $200,000. They're just hairline cracks.'

Feagley instead paid off his mortgage. If he decides to sell his home, however, which he is considering, he will have to disclose he has a sinkhole claim. He also can't get sinkhole insurance unless he makes the repairs.

'In the long run, I was in an $80,000 mortgage, so I could pay it off. I have no mortgage,' he said. 'At the same time, the value of the house is going to be an iffy thing. I have to disclose that I have a sinkhole claim.'

Feagley may not have to look far for a buyer. With the proliferation of claims in recent years, many people are buying 'sinkhole homes' as investment properties, Cain noted.

Sinkhole claims have increased, in part, because more people are 'building where they shouldn't build.' Some older homes also were built with inadequate foundations, which are starting to crumble. And an increase in advertising has boosted awareness.

'They will buy these homes for pennies on the dollar,' Cain said. 'They will do substandard repairs, a little bit of grouting work and find an engineer that will say it is on the up and up.'

Contractor Estimates $95,450

Boitano's complaints lie with the apparent disparity between his repair estimate and his neighbors'.

He asked contractor Champion Foundation Repair Systems of Ybor City to estimate the cost of repairs if a combination of heavy grouting and underpins were used, said Mike Mosher, the company's owner. Champion's estimate came in at $95,450.

Boitano gave the estimate to Citizens consultant ROL Insurance, but Champion is not an engineering firm and therefore cannot make recommendations about sinkhole remediation.

'I'm a repair contractor,' Mosher said. 'There's no professional engineer in my office. We're not allowed to make recommendations at all. He Boitano asked me what it would take to put in grout and piers. It's not a valid repair estimate.'

Boitano has received several letters asking him to accept or reject BCI's and MCD's recommended repairs.

'They're putting pressure on me, saying, 'We're ready to move forward,'' Boitano said. 'They're ready to do it their way, but I want it done right.'

Estimates Vary

Mosher said estimates vary depending on the engineer's philosophy.

'The estimates are different because they are done by two different engineers,' Mosher said.

Mosher, who runs a Web site, www.sinkhole.org, has seen the industry change during the past several years as sinkhole claims have increased, he said.

Instead of paying for repairs, many insurance companies have taken the route of Feagley's insurer, paying the value of homes because it often is less than the cost of repairs. Mosher said the practice has compounded problems.

'This doesn't happen as much anymore, but I've seen homes that are literally falling apart, and the insurance company won't pay anything,' Mosher said. 'Now they're paying anything off. There's no balance.

'If the insurance companies would just take care of problems, no matter how much or how little they cost, it would be a much more regulated business. They're just paying them off.'

Fasano said homeowners should be aware that if they are offered and take a payout for the insured valued of their home and do not fix the sinkhole damage, they can no longer be insured for sinkholes by Citizens. In addition, once a claim is filed, it is difficult to prove there is no sinkhole activity.

'I believe insurance companies pay out too easily and too quickly,' Fasano said. 'They argue it's easier to pay the limits than to fight. If a geologist says there may be a sinkhole it's difficult to prove there's not. Some people have called this sinkhole situation in Pasco 'the blue-collar lottery.' A few people are making a lot of money ... but it's hurting our economy in this community.'

Residents insured by Citizens may call 1-866-411-2742 for information about sinkhole claims or go to www.citizensfla.com.

Reporter Julia Ferrante can be reached at (813) 948-4220 or jferrante@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT