Tips for Filing a Homeowners Insurance Claim

Whether you are reading this to be better informed before filing any homeowners insurance claims or already have filed insurance claims and are wondering how to best handle it, you may be in for some big surprises.

First and foremost, remember that insurance companies are not your friends. Your job is to make sure you have adequate coverage in case of a loss to your home or contents. The job of the insurance company is to pay their policyholders as little as possible after a loss. In other words, their job is to keep as much of your money as they can.

Second, but not least, you need to be as well informed as possible. Insurance is a highly technical field of study and insurance policies are generally interpreted differently by people who read them. Become as familiar with your insurance as you possibly can. What do you do if you have a loss? How do you prepare for a loss before it happens?

Know What Your Policy Covers

Each time your homeowner’s policy comes up for renewal, take a close look at it to see if the coverage and deductibles still make sense for your property coverages.

The Cost to Rebuild or Replace Your Home and Contents

The average home will cost to rebuild or replace your home is approximately $300.00 per square foot.  Make sure

Call the Police When There Is a Loss

It is always best to call the police after you have suffered a theft to your home and/or personal property. Without a police report, insurance companies are reluctant to pay on claims. For example, a person who claims that their house was broken into where thousands of dollars in personal property were stolen will have a difficult time collecting under the theft portion of their insurance policy without a police report.

Take Photos of Damage

Don’t rely on the insurance company, to be honest with you. Make sure that you take pictures and video of all damages to your home and personal property. If you have irrefutable proof to the extent of damage, it will be much more difficult for them to deny coverage under your policy.

Policy Owner and Insurance Company Adversarial Relationship

As stated earlier, insurance companies are out to make money. They will make every attempt to not have to pay you as much as you deserve. Keep that in mind when dealing with them. Many people are able to find an experienced insurance attorney, who specializes in homeowners insurance claims law, to help them.

Photos, Videos, and Receipts

Pick a time every year to review your homeowner’s insurance policy and then take pictures of and make notes of any changes to the property and the contents (personal belongings) and tell your insurance company. Also, keep receipts and take videos of everything you buy. After suffering a homeowners insurance claims loss, you may have to prove what you owned and what was damaged.

Keep a Log of All Communications

Each and every time you contact your homeowner’s insurance company after suffering a loss, keep a detailed log of the conversation. Whenever you call them, they will record your conversation and utilize the information obtained and use it against you if they can. People have said things in recorded conversations that were misinterpreted, which made collecting under their homeowner’s policy much more difficult. Keep track of names, times, dates, and specific conversation details.

At Smythe Law Group, Inc. we know just how important it is to be an informed consumer. One of our goals is to help consumers be better informed when it comes to their property insurance needs. In addition, as insurance attorneys, we provide legal services such as claim negotiation and settlement to not only homeowners and residential property owners, but to commercial property owners as well. As a home or property owner, if you have any questions, feel free to give us a call.