The Insurance Appraisal Process in Maryland, Step by Step

The process at a glance

1. 1

   Pin down the disagreement

   Appraisal starts when you and your insurer agree a loss happened but disagree on what it costs to repair. Before anything else, compare your contractor’s estimate with the carrier’s line by line so you know exactly where the dollars split. If the insurer denies coverage outright, that is a different kind of dispute and appraisal may not be the right tool.

2. 2

   Send a written appraisal demand

   Either side can usually invoke the appraisal clause by giving written notice. A clear demand names the claim number, the date of loss, the amount in dispute and your chosen appraiser, or says one will be named soon. Keep proof of when it was sent and received.

3. 3

   Each side names an appraiser

   Many policies give each party about 20 days after the demand to name a competent, disinterested appraiser. Your appraiser works on your side of the valuation question but should have no financial stake in the outcome beyond a normal fee. Check your own policy wording for the exact time frame.

4. 4

   Select the umpire

   The two appraisers try to agree on a neutral umpire who will settle any items they can’t resolve themselves. If they can’t agree within the period the policy allows, many policy forms let either side ask a court to appoint one. The umpire is often an experienced appraiser, estimator, engineer or retired judge.

5. 5

   Inspect and compare line items

   The appraisers inspect the property, measure, photograph and review the documents each side has gathered. They then work through the estimates item by item – quantities, unit prices, overhead and profit, matching and code items – and agree on as much as they can.

6. 6

   Umpire review of open items

   Anything the two appraisers can’t agree on goes to the umpire, usually with each side’s supporting estimate, photos and pricing. The umpire may inspect the property too. The umpire’s job is to decide the amount of the remaining items, not to rewrite the policy.

7. 7

   Signed award

   When any two of the three – both appraisers, or one appraiser and the umpire – sign a written award, it sets the amount of loss under most policy forms. A well-drafted award separates replacement cost, actual cash value and categories such as dwelling and other structures. Coverage questions, deductibles and prior payments are applied afterwards.

8. 8

   Payment and recoverable depreciation

   The insurer applies the deductible and any earlier payments to the award and issues payment, usually starting with actual cash value. Held-back depreciation is commonly released once repairs are completed and documented within the time the policy allows. Keep invoices and photos of finished work to support that final request.

What insurance appraisal is – and isn’t – in Maryland

Most homeowners and commercial property policies sold in Maryland contain an appraisal clause. It gives you and your insurer a private, structured way to settle one question: how much the covered damage costs to repair or replace. It is not a lawsuit, it is not a complaint to the regulator, and it does not decide whether a loss is covered in the first place. Maryland Insurance Appraiser works only inside that valuation lane, which is why we keep the steps below tightly focused on the amount of loss.

Because appraisal is a creature of contract, the exact rules come from your policy wording. The steps here describe how many common policy forms work, but your declarations page and policy jacket control. For questions about your legal rights, deadlines or coverage, speak with a Maryland attorney.

The appraisal process, step by step

1. Identify the gap

Appraisal makes sense once the insurer has accepted that a covered loss occurred and has put a number on it that you believe is too low – or, less often, when the insurer thinks your number is too high. Lay the two estimates side by side. Disputes usually concentrate in a handful of places: roof quantities and pitch, whether siding or flooring must be replaced to match, overhead and profit, code-required upgrades, and unit pricing for the Baltimore–Washington market versus rural counties. A carrier estimate review can show whether the gap is large enough to justify the time and cost of appraisal.

2. Make a written demand

Either party can usually invoke appraisal in writing. Send the demand to the adjuster and any address the policy lists for notices, and keep proof of delivery. State the claim number, date of loss, property address, the amount in dispute and the name of your appraiser if you have chosen one.

3. Appoint appraisers

Many policies give each side about 20 days to name a “competent and disinterested” appraiser. Competent means the person understands construction, estimating and pricing; disinterested means they have no personal stake in the result beyond a normal fee.

4. Choose an umpire

The two appraisers then try to agree on an umpire. If they cannot, many policy forms allow either party to ask a court to appoint one. A good umpire is someone both sides can trust to read an estimate carefully and to stay out of coverage arguments.

5. Inspect, measure and negotiate

The appraisers inspect the property, often together, and exchange estimates, photos and supporting documents. They then negotiate line by line. In practice, most appraisals resolve here without the umpire deciding anything, because two experienced estimators looking at the same roof or kitchen tend to narrow their differences quickly.

6. Umpire review and award

Items still in dispute go to the umpire. Once any two of the three sign a written award, it generally fixes the amount of loss. The insurer then applies the deductible, prior payments and any policy limits, and issues payment. Where the policy pays replacement cost, the held-back depreciation is usually paid after repairs are finished.

How appraisal fits with the Maryland Insurance Administration

The Maryland Insurance Administration (MIA) regulates insurers in the state and takes consumer complaints about claims handling – slow responses, unexplained denials, ignored documents. Maryland’s claims-handling standards appear in COMAR Title 31 and the unfair claim settlement practices law in the Insurance Article. An MIA complaint is a separate track from appraisal. The MIA looks at how a claim was handled; appraisal sets what the damage is worth. Some policyholders pursue both. If you are considering a claim that an insurer failed to act in good faith, Maryland law generally routes that through the MIA first, and you should talk to an attorney before taking that step.

Who pays for appraisal

Under most appraisal clauses, each side pays its own appraiser, and the two sides split the umpire’s fees and other shared costs equally. Appraiser fees may be hourly, a flat fee or another arrangement agreed in writing. Ask for the fee structure before you sign anything, and run your own numbers with the claim gap and fee estimator to see whether the likely recovery outweighs the cost.

What appraisal won’t do

• It won’t decide whether a peril is covered or an exclusion applies.
• It won’t award bad-faith damages, interest penalties or attorney fees.
• It won’t extend the time you have to sue under the policy or Maryland law – check those dates separately.
• It won’t produce a quick result if the documentation is thin; missing photos and invoices slow everything down.
• It won’t guarantee a higher number. An honest panel can land close to the insurer’s figure if the original estimate was fair.

Documentation checklist

Before you demand appraisal, gather as much of the following as you can. Our appraisal readiness checklist walks through each item.

1. The full policy, including the declarations page and every endorsement.
2. All letters and emails from the insurer, plus the adjuster’s estimate and photos.
3. Your contractor’s estimate, ideally in a comparable line-item format.
4. Dated photos and video of the damage before and after any temporary repairs.
5. Receipts for mitigation work – tarping, water extraction, board-up, tree removal.
6. Weather records for the date of loss, such as storm reports for your county.
7. A log of every call and inspection, with names and dates.

With those pieces in hand, appraisal becomes a focused conversation about numbers rather than a hunt for paperwork. If you’d like a second opinion on whether your claim is a good fit, you can start a claim review with Maryland Insurance Appraiser.