PCTG Consumer Complaint Report Record ID#: 1355598023

This is in reference to a previous complaint on State Farm to the Insurance Department, File No. 09-215-70634 filed in May 2009 where it was determined that based on the information they received, they saw no violations of any applicable insurance laws or regulation. On April 30, 2009, State Farm Employee and PA State license Appraiser Holder #416507, Chris Pozzuolo, came out to our repair facility to view Ms. Desiderio's 2004 Mazda 3. Pozzuolo showed up at our facility without an appointment. When Mr. Pozzuolo entered, I was engaged in a prior scheduled appointment. I asked him why he didn't call in advance an he replied typically like many SF appraisers we don't need to make appointments. With that I gave him the keys to Ms. Desiderio's vehicle and told him the vehicle was on the lot and that I would be with him in a few minutes. When I arrived on the lot to view the vehicle with him, he was on the phone in his vehicle. When he got out of the vehicle, I then proceeded to tell him that Ms. Desiderio is an old friend of mine. Not knowing that this information would be used against assessing the damages on her vehicle and the claim to be deemed as suspicious and sent to SIU for fraudulent allegations and the claim was denied costing Ms. Desiderio financial and emotional duress. When Pozzuolo was finished with his estimate, he proceeded to tell me that the vertical damages and horizontal damages did not look consistent in his opinion. So with that, he decided to write a prior damage estimate exceeding the cost of the actual damage estimate loss per the claim. I asked him where did he come up with this determination? He told me this is what he was told to do. I then reminded him that it is his PA Appraisers License and not State Farm. Following this, State Farm's SIU, Darrell Knight, contacted our facility and Ms. Desiderio and said that due to the pictures, he felt the damages looked suspicious and he was sending State Farm paid consultants, and so called "Engineers" Larry Montanez of P&L Consultants and associate, Jeffrey Lange of Lange Technical Services to determine Ms. Desiderio's vehicle for damages related or not related to the claim. When they first arrived, they also entered our facility without proper authorization and appointment to view Ms. Desiderio's vehicle. They were sent home dissatified. They came back another date, this time with an appointment and only Larry Montanez viewed the vehicle with me and Ms. Desiderio present. After his inspection of the vehicle, Ms. Desiderio asked him what his opinion of the damages was. He replied that they were consistent with what she told State Farm. He then left our facility and within a short time thereafter, that day, Ms. Desiderio was notified that they determined that the "unrelated" damage is considered an intentional enhancement of damage actually sustained during the collision. State Farm also went so far as to submit Ms. Desiderio's name to the Attorney General's office to investigate her for insurance fraud. The allegations of which were not persued by the Attorney General as the allegations were unfounded. With that, Ms. Desiderio then decided to hire legal counsel to file a complaint on her behalf against State Farm for payment of her collision damage. The initial complaint was filed in Philadelphia Municipal Court where a hearing date was scheduled and judgment was awarded in her favor. At the hearing on this claim, Mr. Pozzuolo could not explain his estimates or his own conclusion on the estimates written. Also Ms. Desiderio also had her own Accidental Reconstruction Specialist there to testify on her behalf and proved that not one accident is the same the damages were consistent of what she reported in her claim an discredited the so called hired "Engineers" Larry Montanez on behalf of State Farm. The presiding judge felt that the allegations that were being made against Ms. Desiderio were "very serious". The case was then appealed to the Court of Common Pleas where it is currently in the process of settlement from State Farm. With all of the allegations, inconsistencies made by State Farm and the paid professionals hired by State Farm, it is in my opinion State Farm Appraiser, Chris Pozzuolo, Darrell Knight and others associated with this claim, were prejudiced towards our facility in causing a disruption of business and indirect slander on Prestige Auto Body, Inc. and Ms. Desiderio in their conduct of preparing deceitful, contradictory and misleading damage estimates. Mr. Pozzuolo is a Pa.State Liscence Appraiser a and with his conduct a personnel predjudices made him ignore the laws and conduct of the Appraiser's act. I would like the State Insurance Commission to look into this as soon as possible and take any or all actions on behalf of the CONSUMER Ms. Desiderio. Any documents needed will be provided to assist in this matter. Thank you. Dan Di Loretto " Prestige Auto Body, Inc.