Your life has been turned upside down by a natural disaster or fire that damages your home, or a burglary resulting in a loss of your personal possessions. Thankfully you are covered by a home insurance policy, but you have to make a claim in the midst of your household chaos. Take a deep breath, follow a few simple steps and the process becomes much less daunting.
Step one is to keep in mind your home insurance policy is a contract between you and your home insurance provider with set responsibilities for each party. Take the time to look over your home insurance policy to determine what is expected of you when filing a claim. Ideally you have already covered this aspect of your home insurance before needing to file a claim.
You should contact your agent or home insurance provider as soon as possible after the claimable event, and immediately report any crime involved such as burglary or vandalism to the police. If your home is damaged in a way you can make temporary repairs – broken windows or doors from a burglary or vandalism, damage from high winds or other natural phenomena – take care of those repairs as soon as possible to prevent any further damage to your house and keep track of repair expenses to include with your home insurance claim.
Your home insurance provider will want a list of everything involved in the claim. This includes damaged items and detailed lists of any lost or stolen possessions. If you have the damaged items on hand keep them for the home insurance adjustor. It’s also a good idea to take photographs to have an immediate record of damages.
Get your home insurance claim forms and fully fill them out as soon as possible to keep the claim process moving quickly, and be prepared for your home insurance provider to send an adjuster to your home to assess your claim.
Once the adjuster has taken a look at your home you will likely be given a check as an advance against your claim settlement. This is not your final payment and does not represent your total settlement. If your loss includes both the structure and your possessions you will most likely get two checks, one for each type of claim. Remember if the event that spurred your home insurance claim forces you to temporarily move out of your home, your home insurance probably covers those expenses. If this is the case with your home insurance claim you will receive a third check for your living expenses while away from your home.
