Few things are more stressful than watching disaster strike your home. A fire or flood can damage or destroy the place where your family lives and all your belongings.
Seeing your home go up in flames or underwater can be understandably anxiety-provoking. However, it’s important to respond properly to a disaster because it gets you back on the road to recovery sooner.
These four ways to respond to a fire or flood will help you through your insurance claim process and reduce your stress.
1. Call the Insurance Company
Calling the insurance company right after any home disaster is absolutely essential. The more time passes, the easier it will be for them to deny or minimize your claim. You want to allow the insurer a chance to assess the damage immediately after, or else they may claim that additional damage has occurred due to a lack of mitigation, which they will not cover.
Every policy requires that you contact the insurer asap. Of course, ensure your family is safe first. Then, call the insurance company and let them know what happened.
2. Photograph the Aftermath
When reporting the extent of the damage done to the insurance company, the more evidence you have, and the better the evidence is, the better off you’ll be. Photographs are a great way to prove that you own a piece of property and demonstrate the damage done to it.
You may feel emotional upon seeing your precious belongings burned or water-damaged, but don’t start the cleanup process by throwing them out without taking pictures first! You may feel an understandable urge to move forward from the disaster, but before you do, take pictures of what’s damaged.
However, don’t enter your home after a disaster until it’s been declared safe. You may need to contact a plumber first to close off the water lines. Smoke, loose electric wires, and standing water can present hazards. Prioritize safety first, then worry about your property. The insurance company often will want to be the ones to assess and dispose of content that is non-restorable. It is also safer to have a professional do the disposal depending on the type of loss.
3. Hire an Insurance Lawyer
One foolproof way to remove the stress of an insurance claim is to hire an insurance lawyer right from the beginning. They’ll help you avoid all the insurance industry’s tricks so they cannot minimize their payments or even avoid them, which often happens.
Insurance lawyers will help you submit the paperwork correctly and on time to the insurer, so you don’t face any penalties. They can help you negotiate a higher settlement, and they’ll recognize tactics that companies use, from undervaluing the damage done to using technicalities in the policy wording to reduce payments.
Once a company knows you have an insurance lawyer, they may not even try any underhanded tactics. If they do, unlike an insurance adjuster, an insurance lawyer can represent you in court and are in a better position to deal with opposing counsel if the insurance company has a lawyer.
4. Call Relatives and Friends
Nothing could be more natural after a disaster than feeling sadness, grief, anger, and other intense emotions. You’ll feel better after speaking to your friends and family.
They will provide some perspective and help you realize that so long as the people in your life are fine and well, you can recover your home eventually. Practically speaking, they can also help support you until you’re back on your feet. Insurance should provide an alternative place to live and money for other living expenses, but having family or friends look after your pet or share a meal will feel familiar and comforting.
