MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A 76-year-old man says he is fed up with the number of times he has to call and argue with an insurance adjuster after a piece of a crane collapsed and totaled his Kia earlier this year.
It happened on Feb. 7 after Florida Power & Light officials told Local 10 News that contractors were working on a power line when a piece of the crane fell off and demolished Carlos Perez’s car that was parked near the 1300 block of Northeast 110th Terrace, just west of Biscayne Boulevard.
Following the incident, Perez said he hasn’t received any form of payment from the insurance adjuster working on behalf of the crane company.
Perez told Local 10 News Wednesday that the insurance adjuster told him over the phone to have patience.
However, as a brutal summer heat begins to bear down on South Florida residents, Perez says he is done walking to get groceries or being stranded at home because the companies involved have yet to fix the problem they allegedly caused.
“I need my car,” Perez said in Spanish. “I called the company, but I got no answers.”
Perez said he’s been in contact with the crane company and has not gotten any reimbursement.
Local 10 News could not reach the company but did reach the insurance adjuster representing the company.
They said they had no comment.
On the building next to Perez’s crushed car is a Miami-Dade unsafe building notice.
Residents who lived there, some elderly, some disabled, said they were displaced by February’s crane collapse.
On Feb. 13, Linda Canton told Local 10 News that she was helping her mom pack up after the apartment building was condemned.
“We have to pay for storage, we have to pay for our U-Haul,” she said.
One of the residents, who identified herself as Francisca, said she was asleep when she was thrown off her bed by the impact.
She said she rushed to her disabled neighbor to help her get out to safety.
This remains a developing situation.
FPL released the following statement on the matter to Local 10 News: “FPL takes all claims very seriously and carefully investigates the specifics of each case. It’s important to note this incident involved a contractor performing work for FPL. As a result, we have directed customers who contacted us about a claim to the contractor and its insurance company.”
Local 10 News has reached out to the following other companies to find out why Perez has not received any form of payment for the damage:
- Charles Taylor Adjusting, who the family said settled on a $7,500 payment so Perez could buy a replacement car but then never delivered the payment.