Natural disasters are just as unpredictable as they are damaging. Hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, and even sinkholes may strike at any time, causing devastation to the land. The climate of the United States makes the country prone to natural disasters, especially on the coastlines that are frequently affected by hurricanes.

Statistically, states such as Florida and Louisiana are the most at risk of hurricanes, the damage of just one hurricane costing an average of $30,000. Americans are aware of the dangers and costs involved when dealing with such things, which is why almost 95% of them decided to apply for property insurance.

On the other hand, nearly half of those who benefit from property damage insurance are unaware of the legal and procedural aspects, which could put them at a disadvantage. As a result, the purpose of this article is to provide a quick overview of the steps involved in a home insurance payout claim.

Things To Know About Home Insurance Claims

1. Filing A Claim

When officially reporting property damage, you will have to deal with some paperwork like with many other occurrences. But, before you start filling out registers, remember that an insurance company’s primary goal is to pay the damage that exceeds your deductibles. If the damage is significant, the first step is to gather as much information as possible regarding the incident, such as photographic or video evidence of the damage. After that, you can contact your insurance carrier and submit a payment request.

However, a downside of this process is that some insurance companies will dismiss, diminish, or even misinterpret their policy. For this exact reason, it is better to fill out home insurance claims with the help of professionals who know how to get approval.

2. Assessing The Damage

Once the paperwork is complete, the second step is to assess the damage. Your insurance company will send an adjuster to visit you and evaluate the situation. They will consider factors such as whether the damaged items need to be repaired or replaced. A helpful tip would be to prepare an inventory of the damaged items and hand it over to the adjuster. Also, check your receipts and warranties beforehand, maybe even make a copy of them in case of emergency.

3. Determining The Coverage

After the adjuster has documented all of the damage, they upload the data to specialized software that calculates the worth of the damage based on the factors mentioned previously. They also go through the information and receipts you give them for repairs or replacements. Then they examine the scope of your policy’s coverage.

Once the technical part is completed, your representative will walk you through your policy, from housing coverage to personal possessions, and explain what is and isn’t covered, as well as to what extent.

4. Payment And Repair

An important detail you should pay attention to when signing home insurance is the type of coverage that will benefit you. When you are faced with the choice of insuring your home and valuables, you should be aware of the difference between actual cash value and replacement costs.

• Insurance with real cash value means that the claim is paid out based on the property’s depreciated value.
• Insurance with replacement costs covers the cost of replacing the item with a new, comparable item at today’s market price.