Insurance appraisal in Indiana
Appraisal in Indiana rests on the clause in your policy. Indiana courts and the Seventh Circuit enforce that clause and treat an award as final unless fraud, mistake, collusion or similar misconduct is shown. State law also requires residential property policies to allow at least two years from the date of loss to sue.
At a glance
- Name an appraiser
- Set by the policy form. The forms in the Indiana cases we read use 20 days after the written demand.
- Choose an umpire
- Set by the policy form. The same forms give the appraisers 15 days to agree on an umpire.
- If they cannot agree
- A judge of a court having jurisdiction, on request, under the forms we read. A 1974 Indiana fire policy said a judge of a court of record.
- Does appraisal pause the deadline to sue?
- We found no Indiana rule that pauses the suit deadline during appraisal. Ind. Code 27-1-13-17 bars covered residential property policies from limiting suit to less than two years from the date of loss.
- Who may serve
- We found no Indiana license for property claim appraisers. Ind. Code 27-1-27-15 bars a public adjuster's contract from letting the adjuster act as an appraiser or roofing contractor on the claim. More below
Deadlines in Indiana
The clock
- Day 0Written demandEither party, in writing
- By day 20Appraisers named20 days for each side
- By day 35Umpire chosen15 days, or a court appoints
- On siteInspectionBoth estimates, line by line
- The awardAward signedAny two of three
- After the awardPaymentPer policy and state rules
Either side starts appraisal with a written demand. In the State Farm association policy the Seventh Circuit reviewed in Villas at Winding Ridge, each side has 20 days after receiving the demand to name a competent and impartial appraiser, and the appraisers have 15 days to agree on an umpire before either side may ask a judge to choose one. A 1974 Indiana fire policy used the same numbers.
Your own form controls, so read the appraisal paragraph before you count days.
What the panel decides
Amount of loss; coverage stays with the court
In Villas at Winding Ridge, LLC v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Co., 942 F.3d 824 (7th Cir. 2019), a condominium association disputed how many roofs hail had damaged. The umpire awarded a repair allowance for shingles on 13 buildings and replacement costs for soft metals on 33. The Seventh Circuit refused to set the award aside, held that the umpire decided the amount of the hail damage and not coverage, and said the mere presence of coverage disputes, such as matching shingles, does not undo an appraisal award.
The court cited a federal district court decision, Philadelphia Indemnity v. WE Pebble Point, 44 F. Supp. 3d 813 (S.D. Ind. 2014), which reasoned that an appraisal would almost never work if a panel could not look at what caused the damage. No Indiana appellate court has settled the causation question in what we read, so treat it as the working federal view.
Who may serve
We found no Indiana license for property claim appraisers. The forms in the cases ask for a competent and impartial appraiser. Ind. Code 27-1-27-15 adds a specific rule: a public adjuster's contract may not let the adjuster act as a roofing contractor, an appraiser, or in any role beyond advising and assisting the insured with the claim. A contractor who will do the work or anyone employed by a party also does not fit that description.
The award
An Indiana appraisal award is binding unless the challenger proves fraud, mistake or misfeasance. In Atlas Construction Co. v. Indiana Insurance Co., 160 Ind. App. 33, 309 N.E.2d 810 (1974), the Court of Appeals upheld an award signed by the umpire and one appraiser, without notice to the other appraiser. The Seventh Circuit, applying Indiana law, says awards are binding absent exceptional circumstances such as manifest injustice, fraud, collusion, misfeasance or unfairness, and refused to reopen an award over a matching-shingles argument raised after the umpire had proposed his award.
Points particular to Indiana
The two-year rule in Ind. Code 27-1-13-17 covers first-party property insurance on residential real property of no more than four units where one unit is the named insured's principal residence, and on personal property used in a residential dwelling for personal, family or household purposes. Insurers may not issue, renew or deliver covered policies that limit suit to less than two years from the date of loss. Commercial property policies are outside this statute, so read their suit clauses closely.
In Villas at Winding Ridge, the association replaced the shingles on all 33 buildings for $1.5 million while its claim was pending. The court held that this did not obligate State Farm to pay for the full replacement beyond what the award set, and that the carrier did not breach the policy.
Common losses in Indiana
Each one links back to how we look at that kind of loss.
Questions
Does my Indiana homeowners policy have an appraisal clause?
Common homeowners and commercial property forms do. The clause comes from the policy, not from an Indiana statute that we found. Look in the conditions section under the heading Appraisal.
How long do we have to name an appraiser in Indiana?
The policy form sets it. The forms in the Indiana cases we read use 20 days after the written demand. Read your own paragraph and answer in writing as early as you can.
Who chooses the umpire in Indiana if the appraisers cannot agree?
A judge, when either side asks, under the forms we read. The appraisers get 15 days to agree first. The wording varies between a judge of a court having jurisdiction and a judge of a court of record.
Can the appraisers decide whether my loss is covered in Indiana?
No. They set the amount of loss, and many forms say the carrier keeps its right to deny the claim. Federal courts applying Indiana law have let panels look at what caused the damage they are valuing, as long as they do not decide coverage.
Does demanding appraisal pause the deadline to sue in Indiana?
We found no Indiana rule that says it does. State law requires covered residential property policies to allow at least two years from the date of loss to sue. Find that date in your policy and count from it.
Do appraisers need a license in Indiana?
We found no Indiana license for property claim appraisers. Indiana does bar a public adjuster's contract from letting the adjuster act as appraiser on the claim.
Before you decide anything
Has a claim in Indiana stalled on the number?
Tell us what happened and where. We'll read the policy and tell you plainly whether appraisal fits.
When you write to us
- We read the policy, the estimates on both sides and the letters that came with them.
- We tell you plainly whether appraisal fits the disagreement, and if it doesn't, who can help.
- If it fits, we confirm next steps in writing before anything starts.
Reviewed against the sources listed, October 2026. General information, not legal advice.