Imagine being brutally attacked in your home. Your husband murdered
and in the midst of your grief, having to fight a battle with your insurance company
to pay for items damaged during the assault.
It's the fight one Bloomington woman was
facing until care 11 investigates stepped in.
Here's Lauren La
Manche.
There it is. It's a good picture.
Memories. Always smiling,
always smile of a 53 year marriage. Totally a gentle giant.
That gentle giant was Mark Novak Pam's husband,
a small town mayor, father and grandfather.
Always quick with a compliment especially for
and he loved me. He did. He loved me so much until August 2023. There's
a female.
When before dawn in their Bloomington town home,
a man attacked the couple in their bed.
I woke up to the beating and being stabbed in the head. We were both
brutally attacked
in our beds
and then it moved out into other parts of the house.
First responders found them two victims,
stab wounds, Pam and Mark both stabbed repeatedly. The husband's upstairs.
There's a lot of blood loss.
Mark died.
Pam spent six days in intensive care.
It's fair to say this was a horrific scene.
It was
brutal
as Pam recovered and grieved the murder of her husband.
The things she lost were far from her mind.
Besides she had a state farm condo owners insurance
policy to cover the personal belongings that had been damaged
or soaked in blood.
The bed, the bedding, I mean, you know, the bed frame, I mean,
everything I would think
that they would cover that. Yeah, I thought that that was
part of why you pay insurance. You would assume
that State Farm
would pay for the bed where your husband was murdered and you were attacked. Yes.
Yes.
State Farm saw it differently.
Here's the list of items,
Pam sent to her insurance company when I sent
my property list off to them for coverage.
They said no denied
and that denial stood even after Pam got a lawyer.
The reason according to State Farm,
personal property damaged by blood is not a named Peril
State Farm paid just $190 to cover a broken lamp, scissors and knife.
The attacker used to stab her.
Pam couldn't help but think like a good neighbor.
State Farm is there
of that inescapable jingle like a good neighbor?
You know how part, what part of like a good neighbor are you for me?
And I'm your client. I felt that the claims processing was unfair.
We asked former State Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman,
the man in charge of regulating insurance companies for six years.
To review the case. Personal property damaged by blood is not a named Peril.
What did you make of that argument
to say?
Um, that it doesn't apply because of blood was,
uh I thought just completely inappropriate
this case. He says is an example of why consumers should fight a denial.
What advice can you give people who are doing this without legal help?
Well, first of all, don't give up, pick up the phone call,
the Department of Commerce, they have consumer teams to help them.
The help line. Did you find that when people fought back?
The claim denial was often overturned,
it often is overturned.
When I was commissioner, we investigated a lot of these kinds of claims.
So I think it's important for people just not to give up and to keep fighting.
That's what Pam did. I have a fight in me. Hey, I'm a survivor.
After interviewing Pam, we reached out to State Farm,
they declined an interview and said they couldn't discuss her case,
but less than 48 hours after care, 11 contacted them
State Farm reversed course,
telling Pam they'd cover the damages,
a win for a recovering widow.
After what seems to her an unnecessary fight,
they feel so inhuman.
They, you know, to put anybody through a fight like this.
Now, most of us thankfully will never be in Pam's specific situation.
But the lesson here for anyone is if you think a denial is unfair appeal,
we asked the Department of Commerce how successful they
are at helping consumers in the past three years.
They estimate they've recovered more than $23 million for
people whose property and homeowners claims were wrongly denied.
And we have more information on how you can appeal on our website.
I know people are gonna be wondering about the
crime itself if the person responsible was ever charged.
Yes, someone was arrested.
It, it was a family member, motives unclear and he has been charged.
She's currently in jail. So there is no public safety threat on that front.
That poor woman was through so much to have to go through that too.
That's just not right. So much, so much.
They reached out to you.
Thanks so
much.