PASCO COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – Four and a half months after Hurricane Irma ruined their home, a Pasco couple remains stuck in a hotel, wondering what their insurance money paid for.
James Knapp’s New Port Richey home remains without walls, ceilings and floors, months after their insurance company forked over $63,000 to Paul Davis Restoration of Pasco to repair the home.
Despite that payout, repair work pretty much stopped in October.
“We’re still in limbo,” explained Mr. Knapp.
Irma ripped off part of the roof. Rain gushed in, ceilings collapsed and his home was ruined.
Then the real problems began.
“By the time they got around to issuing a check for the repair of the house it got so moldy, I mean every room, the sheet rock on the ceiling had to be torn down,” said Mr. Knapp.
Paul Davis Restoration gutted the home. Walls came down, the roof was replaced and mold was removed.
“Right now, the house has been gutted and been sitting that way since probably half way through October,” added Mr. Knapp. “Nobody has done any work on the house since.”
In November, Safepoint Insurance Company issued a $63,000 check. James Knapp threw in another $10,000 for repairs. The money was deposited into the Paul Davis of Pasco bank account.
“What I was told is, after the fact, that they pulled the guy’s franchise,” said Mr. Knapp.
The franchise was pulled in October.
Anxious, Knapp called repeatedly. Last week he finally heard from Paul Davis corporate.
“Asked him, ‘okay, what about the money that I’m missing? Are you guys going to pay that back?'” asked Mr. Knapp. “I got told, ‘I don’t know.'”
He wanted answers, so he contacted Target 8.
I asked Paul Davis corporate about the delay as well as the money.
Corporate attorney Laura Ferrante wrote,”We will most definitely make this right.”
This week, a company representative met with Mr. Knapp to determine what is needed to complete the job.
If you have something that you think needs to be investigated, call our Target 8 Helpline at 1-800-338-0808. Contact Steve Andrews at sandrews@wfla.com.
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