What’s The Procedure for Filing a Large Homeowners’ Claim?
When you experience a significant event that damages your home and belongings, you will need to know how to file a claim against your homeowners’ insurance. Many people have a policy in place and pay monthly premiums without ever understanding what they need to do if a disaster occurs. The following steps will help you get the process started so that you can get your life back on track.
Get in Touch With Your Insurance Provider as Soon After the Event as Possible
After any type of event where your home or property is damaged, your first step should be to call your insurance agent and file a claim. You will need to tell your agent what happened during the event. Give an in-depth account of what was damaged and to what extent.
Schedule an Appointment with Your Adjuster
After you meet with your insurance agent, you will also need to schedule an appointment with an adjuster. An adjuster will come to your home and look over the damages to determine the amount of your loss. It’s an adjuster’s job to help you work through the process and will be able to answer any questions you might have.
Secure Your Undamaged Items
Once the adjuster has had a chance to assess the damages to your home and property, you will need to secure any of your undamaged items that may be salvageable. If you can’t secure your property in your home due to the damage, you may have to move them to a storage unit so that it can be held in a safe and secure place.
Find Alternative Housing
When your home receives significant damage, it stands to reason that you won’t be able to return home until repairs have been made. Until that time, you will have to find alternative housing. You may be able to sign a short-term lease for an apartment, or you may be able to find a hotel that provides discount rates for long-term stays.
Create a List of the Items That Have been Lost or Damaged
If you already have an inventory of your home, you will need to go through and make a list of all of the items that were either damaged or destroyed. Once you have created a detailed list of the items you will be named in your claim, you will need to provide the same to your insurance company. It’s important that your adjuster also gets a copy.
Determine How Much It Will Take to Cover Your Losses
You will need to work with your adjuster to obtain the necessary estimates to verify your claim. Once you have all of your estimates in order, you will need to turn them over to your insurance agent to compare the estimated amount to the amount your policy will be able to cover.
Begin to Make Repairs or Replace Your Items
Once you know how much you will receive in compensation, you can start replacing your items and repairing your home. You can schedule your repairs and begin to place orders on your larger items so they can be delivered once your home repairs are finished.
Immediately after an event that damages your home and property, you will need to start the claim process. Call our insurance professionals at Massive Insurance & Financial Services. We can help you get the process started and answer any questions you may have. Contact us today to learn more about filing a claim properly before an accident happens.