A Madison family's fight against the Annandale homeowners association garnered quite a few headlines last month. Richard and Pam Navari are living in an RV parked in their driveway after an electrical fire damaged part of their home last year on Christmas Eve. However, the parking of the RV violates Madison city ordinances since the Navaris did not obtain required HOA approval. Few things will make a reporter foam at the mouth as a struggling family taking on a heartless homeowner's association and big, bad corporate America. The only thing missing from the pre-packaged, fill-in-the-blank stories were names and actual reporting but don't worry, heartstrings were pulled and pulled hard.
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| Credit: WAPT |
It is a sad tale and no one wants to see a family forced out of its home. However, the "reporting" just told one side of the story. The reporter didn't ask Mrs. Navari how much, if any money, the insurance company paid her or when rebuilding the home would start. Meanwhile, the Clarion-Ledger literally copied the WAPT story and posted Mrs. Navari's Facebook video about her ordeal. The story got over a thousand comments on Facebook and even attracted the notice of the Drudge report.
In the video, Mrs. Navari complained no one would help her family try to keep the RV at their home. She accused the Insurance Commissioner of ignoring her plight after she filed a complaint. She made similar claims in the message on her now-deactivated Gofundme page*. She said the insurance company would not help her and was investigating her claim because she hired a public adjuster. The insurance company allegedly stopped "paying our loss of use" and cut the family off last summer.
However, insurance company documents and correspondence do not completely square with the story presented by Mrs. Navari. The insurance company apparently paid over $100,000 to the insured. The insurance company made several payments to the Navaris after the Christmas Eve fire:
* A $10,000 advance sent overnight for living expenses.
* A second check was issued in February for $11,200 for more living expenses.
* The insurance company paid $32,016 in February for a dwelling preliminary payment.
* A $16,302 check was issued in March for "contents pack out."
* $29,237 was paid in April. This included payments for two months rent at $4,000 per month, a $900 pet deposit, and a $1,000 even though "the insured was living in the same rental house." The rent increased and the deposit was charged while living in the house. The remainder of the funds, $19,337, was used for mitigation and cleaning.
* $23,114 was paid for cleaning clothes.
* $1,247 was paid for cleaning some contents.
The insurance company notes state it hired an electrical engineer but the insured demanded "all electrical be replaced in the house or she would not move back into it." The insured rented a house from a neighbor who had the house up for sale. The rent increased from $2,200 per month to $4,000 per month. The insurance company offered to use "temporary relocation services which would bill the insurance company directly for a comparable home which would be furnished. We did confirm there were comparable homes available in the area. The insured refused and has also been renting furniture from Rent a Center for 6 months in the amount of $1,600 per month without authorization."
The lease was allegedly signed for a six-month term without authorization. The insurance company claimed the repairs on the home have not started and that it "stressed the need for the repairs to begin numerous times."
The insurance company questioned more alleged claims:
The insured has submitted replacement invoices for numerous pieces of luggage, designer scarves, shoes, cosmetics, womens clothing, purses, etc without allowing us the opportunity to inspect to see the alleged damages. We asked for substantiating documents and original receipts. We have not received these to date although requested numerous times. The insured sent photos of unrelated items and has not sent receipts."
The insurance company said it stopped issuing payments until it could determine how much of the money spent was used for covered expenses.
The documents also stated that the insurer settled with the insured and that the claim is closed. Coincidentally, the Gofundme page was deactivated about the same time as when the settlement took place.
Then there is the matter of the ticket. Megan West reported the city left "a court summons on the windshield of their RV" and "Navaris are due in court next month for violating the city ordinance. They face fines, court costs and possible jail time."
The report gives a false impression of the city leaving a notice on the windshield where it was not easily seen. The court file says otherwise. The city of Madison issued a citation to Richard Navari on October 17, 2019 at 2:07 PM for violation of a city ordinance. The citation has the defendant's signature. The court date is November 5. The fine is all of $150. Madison records show that the city sent a warning letter to the Navaris on September 17. The Navari's attorney called and obtained an extension to October 15.
However, the Navaris claim they didn't know about the court date because the citation was left on the windshield of the RV. As Lee Corso would say, not so fast my friend. Mr. Navari's signature is at the bottom of the citation (posted below). The incident report states that an officer visited the home and "met Richard Joseph Navari". It also stated "Navari signed the bottom of the citation saying that he would be in court on the above stated date and time." Somehow, those facts were left out of the WAPT story and no correction was ever issued.
Mr. Navari knew about the court date but didn't appear in court. Failure to appear in court for a citation usually results in the issuing of a bench warrant in most jurisdictions and Madison is no different. The judge issued a bench warrant for Mr. Navari for contempt of court. However, Madison is civilized so his attorney was notified of the warrant. The police allowed Mr. Navari to turn himself in and he was released on his own recognizance. He was not arrested for having an RV in the driveway.
The Navaris are scheduled to appear in Madison Environmental Court on December 17 at 1 PM.
* Posted below is the Gofundme message:
Unfortunately, our insurance company and their representatives have not. To date, July 14th 2019, we are still not back in our home. The weeks and months following our fire has been by far the worst nightmare our family has had to face. At present time, the third party administrator's claim's examiner has stopped paying our Loss of Use for housing, furniture, utilities, June and now July rents not paid. The house we have been renting is now back on the market for sale. We have not been reimbursed for any of our expenses we incurred as a direct result of the fire starting on 12/24/18 to present food, clothing supplies etc. We do not have a complete approved estimate from the insurance company's Third Party Administrator that was submitted by their second adjuster they sent out, only as a result of us submitting a completed estimate done by a public adjuster. We filed a complaint with the MS department of Insurance. We have had to hire counsel to help us.
As a result of us filing a complaint and hiring a public adjuster, the insurance company's third party administrator has placed us under an investigation. We have no idea how long this will take.
Our family has no other option except to try and purchase a 5th Wheel or some type of temporary housing unit that can be placed in our driveway for us to live in. We have been looking , we would like to get one where Christopher can have some space, which is an option is a bunk house design. Our goal is to raise enough to assist us with this purchase.
We are still working on our contents, the majority of our stuff that was tried to be saved, still has the smell the smell that is the reminder of our fire. As we go item by item, the smell just wants to make me throw up. It is like we are reliving the fire with every item we list.
Those of you that know me, know I am only asking for help because we are in desperate need. Our number one goal is to stay together as a family. Christopher starts back to school soon, by doing this, he will still be able to ride the same school bus to school while us trying to have some sense of security. At this present moment, as a direct result of not having the security of receiving any loss of use funds available in our policy this is where we are.
If anyone would like to know more about my insurance policy please just ask. We are insured we have a policy that we have been paying on.
57 comments:
"We have not been reimbursed for any of our expenses we incurred as a direct result of the fire starting on 12/24/18 to present food, clothing supplies etc"
Shut the door. She is a bald face liar. Insurance companies are typically very compassionate after a fire loss IF you work with them. Don't pull a Ron White and say it burned up your Rolex radio. The real question is why couldn't they get insured through an admitted carrier. Credit issues, prior claims? Anyone know who the agent is?
Megan West and WAPT got played. They owe the neighborhood of Annandale Estates an on-air apology.
Grifters
There's something very wrong with this. Multiple outlays from the insurance company and the house is still not functional? $120k is a lot of drywall and romex. Seems someone is not motivated...or, wanted a new RV.
Kingfish is the only reporter in the metro area who actually researches the facts.
I have to agree with 9:38.
Omitting relevant facts as is often done for political correctness is bad enough.
But when you actively promote a lie and slander an entire community then an apology isn't enough.
This is evidence of a serious lack of journalistic standards and integrity in your newsroom.
Navari house was not gutted by the fire. Total load of BS.
Hopefully, Mary will throw the book at these lying scumbags. They need to. E made an example of.
How can people be so cold? The insurance company has billions of dollars and these people are only trying to get a few crumbs..a new R.V., some really nice clothes, a new house, a cruise or two, new jewelry, and a couple hundred thou for "walk around money". Is that too much to ask. Have a heart! Jeez.
And this is why Trump hollers fake news. Nobody in news wants to put in the work to get the truth, especially when things already meet their narrative. Great job Kingfish getting the facts, and not worrying about which side that the facts support.
Remember the media falling all over poor mistreated Jussie Smollett?
it's simple. they spent the $ elsewhere and want more
How are they not arrested for insurance fraud (or whatever applicable law that applies)? Clearly they used home repair money for other things. That seems bad, right? I mean I know of folks who collect insurance money for a car wreck and then ride around with the dent in the car forever and all...
$5 gets you $10 they skip town once the well runs dry.
At least they're not welfare cheats!
Smells of Insurance Fraud!!!! WAPT you need to come clean!! West needs to be held accountable!!
yawn
Only replacement cost insurance requires the insured to actually make repairs.
Madison Environmental Court is the biggest joke ever. Judge John Reeves is Mark Mayfield's brother in law and Mark's wife is suing the city of Madison. This whole thinking stinks to high heaven. Crooks going after crooks. Welcome to Madison County.
All local media (except of course JJ) just reports what you tell them to report. Jimmie Gates is Robert Graham's personal reporter, he just writes what he is told. These so-called "reporters" for the TV stations have to be spoon fed stuff to talk about (although Scott Simmons seems to have a lot of sense, but that's about it).
I guess I am just not smart enough to get away with shit like this. My balls are small too. Maybe, I just have a conscience. Yeah, I will go with that.
This post is weird. The comments are weird. The obsession on this family is weird.
This post is weird. The comments are weird. The obsession on this family is weird.
How so? Be specific.
Hate to be the bearer of bad news but as long as media is click driven and owned by public companies that are required by shareholders to maxmimize profits you will not get what is true, only what gets clicks.
@1:35 This family chose to go on the record with WAPT. They chose that. Once you go on record publicly with your story, it is fair for folks to look at all sides to see if the story is truthful. That is all that Kingfish has done.
In my experience Megan West has often used this tactic in her reporting, and has often been praised for the product she created.
You are weird if you’ve made yourself think there is an Obsession with the family or believe this post is weird. Please be more constructive.
We are very weirdly interested to learn of your weird theory on why all of this is weird.
I have no idea on this story. I do know of others whose home is not inhabitable due to a fire. It has been several weeks since the fire and not a cent of insurance benefits have been paid.
@3:12. Get off the pot and read the post. You must be in California or sitting in the a House Judiciary Debate.
honestly I can fathom that Megan West is smart enough to make a false narrative for dramatic professional gain as a social justice reporter, she is just a puppet and talking head reading a teleprompter. We have had a lot of politicians, pundits, and so called reporters that fit this bill. Her overzealous husband, well, he might be the one whispering in her ear, but in all actuality, it is the news station that writes the script, she is just a pretty girl who looks good pretending to be serious.
Since I don't know all the facts, I will reserve judgment. I will say that this debacle has raised an interesting question: should there be an exception to the City of Madison's RV exclusion for emergency situations?
Thanks KF for exposing the truth.
Seems the insurance company went "above and beyond" with this family.
I'm looking forward to more updates.
I hope these crooks get crucified for the insurance fraud they committed.
Annandale has been going downhill for a while. Homes in foreclosure, property values declining, and continuous problem with home foundations out there due to Yazoo clay,
3:31, reading is fundamental and you don't have much of it. 3:12 clearly said he/she was not referring to this story and was making a comment about the experience of someone else.
Just had two comments fail. One, you know you can't make that joke. Remove the joke and it's fine. Other one, remove second clause in the first sentence and you're in.
The story was shopped to a couple of media outlets but they didn't bite.
This is a good post. Here is how this is.
I doubt they will fix anything, may just let it go into forclosure, file bk and have them a little nest egg and move on to another town. That how the tea leaves read. The damage I see released in photos is a joke for damage. They are grifting their ass off. Dumbest thing they did was go to the media, now all us armchair detectives are on that ass. I would love to know where all they have lived and what people there say about them. I know there are stories out there.
Yazoo clay is an issue all round but many houses have crap for foundation, crap for water control, crap for framing and on top of it all, many of the people who lay or layed brick, did not use the brick ties that the framer put on the house.
6:57 Stay on point. You, you, fundamentalist.
Can someone go to jail for this??? Fraud!!!
Disgusting!!! Why won’t WAPT take ownership of the monster they created???
For those wondering why this story has garnered such interest/commnets, I will just answer for myself: I don't like being conned, manipulated, and generally lied to. It pisses me off. When I find out that has happened, I like to call it out.
7:38...WAPT did not create this 'monster'....the homeowners did.
This demonstrates a complete naiveté for the way insurance claims are disputed and resolved over time, and an realistic viewpoint that because an insurance company made offers to a person, the offers must be sufficient. And by God, trust the insurance company they were sufficient. This is a one side view of the insurance company and might as well be a paid piece for it.
You are all ripping into a woman with irrelevant information from her past because she dinged your reputation in this instance.
I hope West does more stories like this.
Google her name. You will find major bankruptcy (millions) and lawsuits. A trail is in Virginia. So this was new ground for her. Wonder how many good homeowners and people in Mississippi, and Nationwide (thanks To WAPT) were hoodwinked and fleeced into giving her money. I guess we will never know. She should pay every dime back or WAPT should cough it up!!
WAIT a minute please. $23,000 to clean clothes? That's a lot of ugly Christmas sweaters.
Remember, people and claims like this are all factored into your homeowners rates.
I'm still wondering why it is with a surplus lines carrier. The only reasons I have ever seen is prior claims issues, or severely bad credit. Both typically point to claims activity similar to this a lot of the time. Hopefully Mrs. Navari will come to clear the air since all of this came to light. She was quick to run to the media, yet has been pretty mum since this came out.
In my contracting business, Nationwide, Farm Bureau and State Farm have paid what ever the homeowners have needed to be made whole. I do not believe for a minute that Nationwide was doing anything but paying way more than needed. Bad credit = unreliable people who are more likely to have a large claim. I do enjoy this story though. Without this blog we would know nothing of this but it is hard to hide from this now that the situation has been uncovered.
5:55; I think the insurance company being debated is in England.
Apparently most of you "opinion guru's" are clueless to how local news stations and reporters work. Daily, there is a strategy meeting and the NEWS DIRECTOR determines what "news stories" are covered. Many times, NEWS DIRECTORS from competing stations actually "talk" (amazing how many "top stories" are the same on all 4 stations). A dollar to a donut, Ms. West had nothing to do with the selection of this particular story, or the verbiage associated with it. I think some of you keyboard a holes just wanna be just that.....a holes.
First I am not scared to use my name..I worked at local TV station where I was the assignment editor and I always confirmed the story with two sources before it ran, I was too good at gathering info so therefore alot of stories weren't aired. The facts should have been checked and the whole story confirmed, I'm tired of the media allowing someone else to dictate the contents of the story.
Jimmy K. Taylor
Actually the grid meetings are twice a day. ;-) Generally 9 or 9:30 and 1:30 or 2.
"5:55; I think the insurance company being debated is in England. "
Lloyd's of London, if you can believe the quote this "reporter" apparently got from the homeowner, who seems like a not very reliable source based on other parts of this long, shaggy-dog story.....
12:45, I am an a-hole sometimes, but I don't really want to be that way, and I usually regret it.
Nonetheless, there is no excuse for not verifying a story by at least giving the other side(s) an opportunity to comment and present their version of the facts. I'm pretty sure I learned that in my first couple of journalism classes. What WPAT ran was a one-sided ambush.
I don't lay this all at Megan West's feet, either. I think this was a failure at the editor level. Unfortunately, Ms. West took ownership of the story when she became the public face of it. Now, if it is to restore its integrity, the station needs to publish a follow- up based on more thorough reporting, in my opinion.
2:06 damn you don't seem to be slow.....just maybe thick. Ms. West, I am quite certain, does as she is instructs and I feel quite certain would do as you suggest, IF HER BOSSES TOLD HER TO. Can you spell duh? IMHO, although I do not know her, nor have ever even met her, is again, IMHO, the best anchor in the city, and her "partner" (can you say that now?) Troy Whatever a close second.
Good job, KF! We live a few doors down from the Navaris. In recent months I've discovered a simple way to tell if Mrs. Navari is lying - is she speaking?
That crook threw our neighborhood under the bus and gave us some bad publicity, but I wish her well: Have fun in court next week, Mrs. Navari! Reap what you've sown!
WAPT’S reporting on this case was because of a lazy reporter!! Surely there is no corruption in a Mississippi news network!!! No reporter can be that stupid! Shame!!! Shame!! Shame!!
Still looking for Cousin Eddie in the photo. “This here is an RV.”
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