Herb-alaska
Contributor
Agreed.
I am or have been on both sides of this issue. I did insurance investigations for 20 years and am doing commercial diving now.
steps that the insurance claim must follow is
1. verify that coverage exist for the item lost. Policy in force for that item and the value of the coverage
2. verify the loss of the item - Police report - formal claim in writing submitted via postal
3. Verify the value of the item lost after all deductibles are satisfied.
4. Determine salvage potential - Cost of the pay out minus the cost of the recovery factor in the potential for recovery and then the insurance company makes a decision on what to do if anything.
5. Insurance company makes a payment and then they own the item. They may sell you back the salvage rights but that has to be in writing otherwise you give the money back if you find the ring. Same way if your stereo is stolen and then paid by the insurance company when it is recovered by the police it goes to the insurance company, not back into your car.
Insurance companies are very specific about how claims are filed and the documentation provided. A person that drives up with the claim form and walks all documents into the office are much more suspect than those that mail it in because if you mail in a false claim in you not only conducted insurance fraud "that is bad" but you also completed mail fraud and the postal system has a lot of money and laws to make you wish you never even thought about it. Insurance companies love it when things become criminal because it takes the pressure off them.
Insurance companies never contract work with out a written estimate of charges unless they are sure that the work will not exceed reasonable and customary and that expedience is necessary. I did a hull survey on a multi million dollar cruise ship that hit a rock without an estimate or even a question of how much will this cost because i was in the air in 30 minutes from the first call. The reason was they needed verification that the ship was not in immediate peril and the Coastguard would not let them move until it was completed. They had 25 customers who had paid 7,000 each for an Alaskan cruise and they were facing potential refunds if they did not keep the schedule. If I had submitted a bill for 100,000 on that days work I never would have been paid because I could not defend that charge, I did get paid 1,200 and I was home before lunch and the check was in the bank for dinner. The key was the insurance company said go or the shipping company said go and we will pay if they don't . But it was all decided before I flew.
Long story short Like everyone said you circumvented the claim process, you agreed to the salvage contract, and so no money paid and if you want the ring you better start negotiating a rate that they will accept. I bet they would work for less now that they know that the insurance company isn't paying.
Say hey I can't pay you 2,100 but here is 1,500 which is 75 per hour which is not a bad wage. Because you do not have the contract in writing. But then they have the ring so you both have strengths.
Good luck