The Situation at Elevation
The Eagle Point Resort suffered catastrophic structural damage when regional wildfires swept through the property. The insurer's independent adjusters quickly processed the scene and issued a preliminary settlement offer. However, their estimate applied generic, flat-land construction pricing to a high-altitude facility. They completely omitted the massive premiums required for transporting materials up the mountain, housing specialized labor, and meeting the stringent, newly updated local snow-load codes. The resort management was facing a multi-million dollar shortfall that threatened the viability of the upcoming ski season.
The Technical Execution
Utah Claims Pros was retained to audit the carrier's scope. We immediately rejected the standard pricing model. Our estimating team spent two weeks building an exhaustive, 120-page Xactimate file that painstakingly documented the true logistical costs of high-altitude commercial construction. We partnered with local structural engineers to legally mandate the code upgrades the carrier had classified as unnecessary “betterment.” We presented the carrier with undeniable proof of under-scoping, specifically citing violations of Utah Admin Code R590-190 regarding fair settlement practices.
The Verified Result
Confronted with unassailable technical data and the threat of an appraisal demand, the carrier capitulated. They revised their settlement offer to reflect our exact figures, increasing the total payout by over 140% from the initial estimate. The resort secured the capital necessary to begin immediate, compliant reconstruction without dipping into operational reserves.
“The initial insurance offer would have bankrupted our rebuild project. Jonathan Tanner brought an entirely different level of technical firepower to the table. They didn't just argue; they proved the numbers.”