Silent Hurricane: Letter to Florida Representative Julio Robaina
As part of its continued advacy for victims of Chinese drywall, attorney David Durkee sent this correspondence to Florida Hosue of Represenatvies, Julio Robaina of District 117.
Dear Representative Robaina:
I wanted to take a moment and thank you for allowing me to voice my concerns concerning the issues that surround Chinese drywall. As we have discussed, Chinese drywall is like a silent hurricane that has devastated the state of Florida. When “defective” drywall is installed in a home, it causes damage to various components of the home, such as the air conditioning, the wiring, appliances, electronics, alarms, etc. However, it also causes symptoms to the homeowners and their families. These symptoms range from burning eyes, to bloody noses to respiratory problems.
Victims of this product defect are hard working, taxpayers. These are folks that have worked their entire life and have always played by the rules and paid their bills. Most, if not all, of these victims now have to face the sad fact that their most valuable asset, their home, is toxic.
The reason that this silent hurricane is more devastating than a regular hurricane – is because there is no first party insurance coverage for this loss. When a regular hurricane hits the state of Florida the insurance industry immediately sends an army of adjusters and millions of dollars so that homeowners can begin to rebuild. However, this silent hurricane, called Chinese drywall, hit Florida about a year ago and, as far as I know, not one insurance company has yet to pay one nickel. This is mainly because the insurance companies are relying upon the “Absolute Pollution Exclusion” to deny these claims. Therefore, victims cannot simply make a claim with their homeowner’s insurance and be made whole.
Instead, they have been forced to seek justice through the Federal and State court systems. Although, both the Federal and State court systems have been doing all they can do to address this issue, obtaining a verdict against any defendant takes time. Time that these victims simply do not have.
In the mean time a victim of “Chinese” drywall has only two choices, move out of the toxic home or continue to live in a toxic home. If a homeowner chooses to move from the toxic home, then typically these victims cannot afford to pay both their mortgage and the additional living expenses that are incurred by living out of the home. As a result, these victims then risk losing their home before they can have their day in court.
Our firm, on behalf of our clients, have been writing to a number of lending institutions asking for help. We have tried to convince these banks that foreclosing on a real “toxic” asset is simply not in their best interests. We have asked them to work with our victims so that the victims can afford to pay for the additional living expenses while the lawsuit is pending and not risk losing their home. However, as of today, no lender has been willing to work with us. In fact most of my letters go unanswered. (A sample of the letter we typically send is attached).
Therefore, if banks are not going to help these victims, government needs to do what it can to help these folks. I am a firm believer that less government and less regulation is what is best for this country. However, at this time, an executive order by Governor Crist and/or new legislation addressing this issue is necessary. This could be governmental action that, in the end, is a win/win for all parties involved.
I would propose some sort of executive order and/or new legislation that would be addressed solely to banks that were helped by tax payer money when the financial crisis was averted. The rationale behind this argument would be that since taxpayers helped these institutions survive in their time of need, they should now help taxpayers who have been victimized by Chinese drywall. This executive order and/or new legislation would require banks who participated in the bailout to allow victims of Chinese drywall to stop paying their mortgages until their lawsuit has been completed or their home is repaired without penalty.
This type of action would be a win for the banks. At the end of the day, they will not have a “toxic” home in their foreclosure inventory, they will have a home that has been repaired. The bank will not lose a valuable customer – instead they will have a customer who is even more loyal and appreciative. The only thing that the bank will lose is one year’s worth of interest.
Also, there will be a ripple effect to this action. When homeowners move from their toxic home, they will rent another home. When this homeowner is renting another home they will be paying rent. The payment of this rent may help another homeowner in financial trouble fend off foreclosure. Further, if the homeowner can save enough money because they are not paying their mortgage, then they may actually be able to make repairs before the lawsuit is completed. Rebuilding thousands of homes that have Chinese drywall will put people to work in the housing industry – something that would be great for the Florida’s economy.
n the end this action is necessary to help victims of this silent hurricane; it is necessary to help stabilize the foreclosure rate; it is necessary so that families do not have to lose their home before they can seek justice in the court; it is necessary so that families with young children do not have to choose between their family’s health and their economic future; it is necessary to boost the rental market and to help the housing industry get back to work. This one action could be the cure to many of Florida’s ills. Finally, this action is fair because in the time of crisis the American taxpayer came to the rescue of these banks – now it is time for the banks to rescue victims of toxic, Chinese drywall.
Thank you once again, on behalf of all victims, for listening. Please do all that you can to help these victims.
C. David Durkee
E-mail Address:
durkee@rdlawnet.com
Telephone:
305.442.1700