Your carrier's estimate uses a pricing database that doesn't reflect your market. Labor and materials are undervalued. Here's how to prove it and get the difference paid.
⚠️ Xactimate and other databases are often set to wrong regions, outdated releases, or low defaults. The result: estimates that underpay by $8,000-$30,000. Policyholders who document market rates recover the gap.
Carriers use software like Xactimate, Symbility, or similar platforms to build repair estimates. Each line item—drywall per square foot, roofing per square, electrician hourly—comes from a central database. The database has different pricing by region, trade, and quality level. Adjusters select items and the software calculates the estimate.
The problem: databases are maintained by third parties, updated periodically, and configured by each carrier. Wrong region selection, outdated pricing releases, and conservative default settings produce estimates that fall below actual market cost. Construction costs have risen sharply; many databases lag behind. Your policy obligates the carrier to pay prevailing or reasonable rates—not whatever the database spits out. See our guide on how insurance companies calculate settlements and our supplement master guide for disputing methodology.
At least two itemized bids showing current market pricing
Material costs from local suppliers for key items
Trade association rates, union scales, or market surveys
Compare these to the carrier estimate line by line. Document each gap. Create an itemized supplement showing the difference between database pricing and market rate. Submit with a formal dispute letter.
Compare the carrier estimate to contractor estimates. Note every line where the carrier's price is below contractor pricing. Group by labor vs. materials. Calculate the total gap.
For labor: contractor estimates, trade association data, or labor rate surveys. For materials: supplier quotes, contractor line items. The more independent sources, the stronger your case.
Create a schedule: line description, carrier amount, market amount, difference, supporting document. Total the column. This becomes your supplement.
Send a formal dispute letter with your pricing comparison and attachments. Reference your policy's obligation to pay prevailing rates. If they refuse, escalate to the supervisor. Invoke appraisal if your policy allows. File a complaint with your state insurance department.
Our comparison tools and dispute templates help you document pricing gaps and recover $8,000-$30,000. Your policy pays prevailing rates—not outdated defaults.
Start Your Claim ReviewMost policies require the carrier to pay for necessary repairs at prevailing, reasonable, or similar cost. The pricing database is the carrier's internal tool—it doesn't define the legal standard. When you provide evidence that actual market cost is higher, the carrier must either pay the difference or justify why their number is correct. "Our database says so" is not sufficient when you have contractor bids and market data showing otherwise.
Insurance pricing databases (e.g., Xactimate, Symbility) contain preset labor and material rates by region and trade. Carriers use them to build estimates. The databases are often outdated, set to wrong regions, or configured with low defaults. When database pricing doesn't match actual market rates, your estimate is underpaid—often by $8,000-$30,000.
Yes. Your policy obligates the carrier to pay prevailing or reasonable rates. Database pricing is not binding. You can challenge it with contractor estimates, supplier quotes, labor rate surveys, and trade association data. Document the market rate and demand the difference.
Get at least two contractor estimates showing current labor and material costs. Obtain supplier quotes for materials. Document labor rates from trade associations or local union scales. Compare line by line to the carrier estimate. The gap between database pricing and market proof is your dispute amount.
The database is their tool—not the legal standard. Your policy pays for necessary repairs at prevailing rates. If contractor estimates and market data show higher costs, the carrier must justify why their numbers are correct. Escalate to supervisors, invoke appraisal if available, or file a complaint with your state insurance department.
Recoveries typically range from $5,000 to $30,000 depending on claim size and the extent of pricing gaps. Labor rate disputes alone often yield $3,000-$12,000. Material pricing disputes add more. Combined with other supplement items, total recoveries can reach $25,000-$40,000.