Q: I have a question about a recent water job we recently finished. An apartment condo flooded and some of the water also went into the next door neighbor's apartment. Whose insurance would be responsible for the next door neighbor's damage?

Without seeing the policy and without knowing the jurisdiction, I can at least give you some general answers that are probably true and correct in any jurisdiction.

Each unit owner can go to his own insurance company, but he'll have to pay his or her own deductible. 

If the cause of loss was due to someone's negligence, then each unit owner could go after the negligent party. 

Negligence might be improper installation of appliance that was the source of water, such as a water heater or toilet, etc.

Q: What is the best way to get an insurance company to mail our check to our address instead of to the customer's address? It seems so unprofessional for me to have to call the customer and ask if our check has been mailed to them yet. Please help.

First, the most you could ever hope for (and that’s assuming you’ve got a great working relationship with the adjuster) is that the adjuster would at least put your name on the check and then let you know that it’s been mailed to the property owner or their agent. 

As far as it being unprofessional to call the customer, you should treat this no differently than if you were collecting on an unpaid invoice. You’d be calling the customer to find out when payment would be made. Some guys I know would be standing right in the customer’s face.  

You pressure the property owner. Let him pressure the insurance company. 

Peter Crosa has been a licensed independent adjuster for more than 35 years, handling insurance claims throughout the United States and Latin America. Since 2000, he has traveled across the country conducting seminars and speeches on the topic of marketing restoration services to the insurance claims industry. He is author of the 2010 Restoration Contractors Guide to Insurance Repair. Visit his website at www.sshca.net or e-mail him your question at peter@sshca.net.