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The Basics Of Home Damage Insurance Claim

Before you make your Bay Area home damage insurance claim, there are a few important things that you should keep in mind. Here are some of the important things that you should take note of.

Bay Area Home Damage Insurance Claim

What is Included In Homeowner’s Insurance?

One of the first things that you should do is to have a clear idea of what is included in your home insurance. Most homeowners insurance helps you cover the following

  • Damage to your property
  • Damages to other structures on your property
  • Loss of Personal property
  • Liability for injuries or damage to someone else’s property

You might get additional coverage in certain policies. In most cases, your homeowner’s insurance policy will cover damages caused by fires, lightning strikes, hurricanes, or similar catastrophes and hail. However, you must realize that not all natural disasters are covered by homeowners insurance. To cover for those incidents, you may be able to purchase separate insurance policies to help protect your home and belongings against those types of risks.

How To Make A Claim Against Your Homeowner’s Insurance?

When you are looking to make a claim against your Bay Area home damage insurance, you need to follow a set process. This would help you get your claims settled without any delays. At the same point in time, you would be able to get the right payout.

The overall claims process can be divided into the following stages

Stage 1. Beginning The Claim Process

Step 1 –The process starts with reporting your claim. You need to call your insurance company as soon as possible.

Step 2 – The damage will be inspected. You would get a call from the claims adjuster from the insurance company to discuss what happened and what your insurance policy may or may not cover. They will also schedule a visit to inspect the damage in person.

Step 3 – You need to document your losses. Make sure to take photos or videos as that will help you remember the losses and damages. If you can’t prepare a detailed inventory, take photos of the damaged areas. It is important to make a list of everything damaged inside your home.

Step 4 – Keep the receipts safe. If you are making any necessary temporary repairs or living arrangements, make sure that you keep your receipts. Your insurer may ask you to provide them as part of the claim process.

Stage 2. Relocating After A Loss

Step 5 – Dealing with the loss of use. If you are not able to stay in your home after a covered loss, your homeowner’s policy might offer you reimbursement for your additional living expenses. This includes costs such as staying at hotels, car rentals and other day-to-day normal expenses caused by temporary relocation.

Stage 3. Resolving A Claim

Step 6 – Receiving The Payment – After receiving the report and application, the insurance company will determine, whether the policy covers the loss. If they do, you will receive a check based on the damage estimate.

It is important to realize that the timeframes vary. Every loss is different, so the time taken to resolve a claim varies. The damage inspection report and details of the loss will play an important part in determining the time needed to settle a claim.

Steps Of Filing An Insurance Claim

What Does An Insurance Adjuster Do?

So, what does a Bay Area Public Adjuster do? Well, to put it simply, a public adjuster is an insurance professional who is hired by homeowner. This is in contrast with the adjuster employed by the insurance company. A public adjuster advocates on your behalf, and helps you to process the insurance settlement.

A public adjuster can help you with many different tasks. For example, our professional Bay Area Public adjuster will help you to-

  • Evaluate the damage and estimate the cost of and time it will take to repair or replace property or structures.
  • Helping you understand what is covered in your insurance policy.
  • Tracking the claim, filing documents, and meeting deadlines, which facilitates the overall process
  • Acting as a liaison between you and the insurance company.
  • Communicating with other third-parties such as attorneys or witnesses.
  • Negotiating with your insurance company to get a fair payout

These are some of the things that a Bay Area public adjuster will help you with. To discover all the different ways in which our adjusters can help you with the insurance process, speak to our team today.

Why Do You Need To Hire A Public Adjuster?

Claims Are Settled Faster

Since our adjusters have years of experience working with some of the biggest insurers in the state, they know exactly the documents that are required and the exact process of settling the claims. This avoids the chances of the settlement being delayed.

You Get The Right Payout

The amount of money that you will get in the insurance payout will depend on the coverage and the assessment of the damages. The damage is officially assessed by the independent adjuster hired by the insurance company but your public adjuster would work closely with them so that all the damages are properly documented and categorized in a way that they fall under your insurance coverage. This ensures that you get the right payout.

Works On A Contingency Basis

You don’t need to pay for the services upfront, as most adjusters work on a contingency basis. This means that only a percentage of the insurance payout will be charged as a fee, and you don’t have to pay anything until your claim is settled.

 

The Process We Follow For Bay Area Home Damage Insurance Claim

Restoration Bay team for Bay Area Home Damage Insurance Claim usually follows a specific process for settling the claims. Here is a brief overview of the process we follow:

Initial Consultation

When you give us a call, we would have a detailed discussion with you. You will need to sign a letter of authorization, which would allow us to start the claims process with your insurer.

Assessment

Next, the damage will be assessed. At the same time, we would go over a range of different official documents as well as insurance policy documents to chalk out a claims strategy.

Documentation

At this stage, documents will be prepared to submit the application for the claims. Here are the documents that need to be prepared.

  • Detailed construction estimates with supporting engineering documents if necessary.
  • A detailed and verified list of inventory and contents schedules with correct valuation and supporting documentation.
  • All the required technical and supporting documents that show the current industry publications and authoritative papers supporting positions taken in the claim adjustment process.

Presentation Of The Claim

Once the full extent of the loss is determined and documented, a schedule of losses will be prepared and reviewed by our team. The claim is segregated into the relevant categories to the various policy provisions.

Negotiation

After making the presentation, we will start the negotiation process of the claims settlement. We will keep you updated of all the latest developments till the final settlement.

Frequently Asked Questions

If both the structure of your home and your personal belongings are damaged, you will usually get two separate checks from the insurer – one for each category of damage. If you can’t live in your home, then you will also receive a check for the additional living expenses (ALE). This is for the costs that you will incur when you have to live someplace else while your home is being repaired.

There are some companies that may ask you to sign a “direction to pay” form that allows your insurance company to pay them directly. However, you should read the agreement and make sure that you are not assigning your entire claim over to the contractor. We also offer damage repair service which makes the process a whole lot simpler.

The additional living expenses (ALE) have nothing to do with repairs to your home. So, ensure that this check will be made out to you and not your lender.

More Information About Insurance Claim