As Southwest Florida continues to recover from Hurricane Irma, one homeowner in Golden Gate Estates is frustrated over the lengthy process of releasing money for home repairs. Mike Tanner's home suffered tens of thousand of dollars in damage from Irma.
"The most extensive was the roof...the tree damage on the roof," he said.
Adjusters made their inspections, and his insurance company issued him a check for over $50,000, which his secondary mortgage lender signed. Then Tanner went to his primary lender, Regions Bank.
"There were multiple steps...extensive steps that we're required to take," he said.
Those steps include providing copies of the contractor's license, liability insurance, and the contract itself - just to receive the first of three disbursements.
"Upon submitting that, they will then disburse funds of an unknown amount," Tanner said.
Fox 4 reached out to Regions Bank to ask why the process of getting money to homeowners to fix their homes is so extensive.
"We understand the difficulty that our customers are facing right now," said Regions spokesman Jeremy King. "We want to help ensure that the insurance support a customer is receiving goes toward quality, licensed, certified service providers, who will make sure that the repair work done on a customer's home is done right."
King added that he would ask Regions staff to get in touch with Tanner to ensure that questions about the disbursement process are addressed.
Regions Bank has established a toll-free number to expedite assistance to customers affeted by Hurricane Irma: 1-800-411-9393.
