Crittenden family sues 'storm chasers'

CRITTENDEN, Ky. - It's no wonder Maria Kunkel always has her hands full.

She is the mother of nine children: Nick, Phillip, Luke, Rebecca, Christopher, Monica, Sarah, Dominic and Anthony.

They were all home in Crittenden, Ky., when a tornado crashed down their street last March.

"We went into the bathroom downstairs," Kunkel said. "You could feel your ears popping from the pressure."

The family was fine, but the house wasn't.

"The tornado lifted the roofs off the houses," she said.

Their siding was damaged, walls shifted and the carpet in some of the bedrooms was ruined. Their insurance company was there for them.

"They gave us everything we expected them to," she said.

While the house was being fixed, Kunkel says a man showed up at her door from a company called Pro Claim.

His pitch: "That they can get you so much more money from your insurance company," Kunkel said.

With the kids starting to get anxious for attention, Kunkel tried to get the man to go away, saying she wanted to discuss it with her husband.

But the man wouldn't leave.

She says he told them they would look into her claim for free with no obligation, but he needed her to sign permission first.

"I signed that," she said. "Of course, now I wouldn't do anything so stupid."

Without knowing it, Kunkel had signed over her insurance authority to a complete stranger. What she thought was a harmless form, was a binding contract giving Pro Claim 50 percent of any money her insurance would pay out.

"Obviously, my mistake," she admitted. "I did not read the entire thing."

The Better Business Bureau calls people who show up after a natural disaster to hawk their services "storm chasers."

They say while some are honest, 90 percent may be looking to take advantage of victims' vulnerability.

The Kunkels have filed a class action lawsuit accusing Pro Claim of fraud and overcharging for their services.

Michael Michio, who works for Pro Claim, sent a written statement to WCPO in response to the lawsuit.

"The Kunkel's signed a contract and hired our firm to represent them on their insurance claim after the recent tornado.  Our firm represented the Kunkel's to the best of our ability.  A larger settlement was agreed to with the Kunkel's insurance carrier using our estimate and scope of damages. It is sad to see frivolous lawsuits filed after terms of the contract were agreed to prior to work being performed."