The 2006 New Year’s weekend flooding on the north coast affected 34 California counties. Sonoma, Mendocino, Napa and Marin counties received an estimated $350 million in damage. Flooding was particularly severe on the Russian River.

The photo above is from the Guerneville flooding in the mid-80s, which shows that the town is no stranger to periodic flooding from the Russian River.

My involvement with flood victims began with a Guerneville resort, consisting of hotel rooms, a bar and restaurant. I worked with them to obtain the policy limit for the structure of $1 million and personal property of $50K. I also determines they could add wind damage to the claim, which provided them with the vital business interruption coverage of $200K.

Soon after I was contacted by the owner of Guerneville’s restaurant for assistance, and soon after more than doubled the insurance settlement from $180K to $460K.

A local theater with interior water damage was initially denied coverage by Farmers when the insurance company claimed that water had soaked through a defective roof. I was brought in to represent them, and I was able to prove that the roof was damaged in the winds during the flooding, and the client received a $300K settlement.

References available upon request for the cases above