Did Tropical Storm Idalia damage your house? How to make home and flood insurance claims

As Tropical Storm Idalia pushed through the Lowcountry, Beaufort County saw flooding, high winds and fallen trees and branches.

If your home was damaged, filing a homeowner’s insurance claim will help you get money back for losses or damage. Flood insurance is not part of a standard homeowners policy, and those with flood insurance will need to file flood claims separately.

Here is the process and steps to follow as you start your insurance claims:

Contact your insurance agent or company to report loss and damage as soon as you are safe

When speaking with your insurance agent, be prepared to provide your policy number and contact information. Consider asking them the following questions: Am I covered? How long do I have to file a claim? What is my deductible, and will my claim exceed my deductible? If claims won’t exceed your deductible, it might not be worth making a claim. Am I eligible for an advance payment? An advance payment will get you some money earlier and be deducted from the final claim payment.

Your insurance company should send you claim forms once you verbally make a claim. Fill these out as soon as possible and return them to get the process started.

Your adjuster should then contact you within 48 hours of you reporting your claim. An adjuster works for the insurance company to review what happened and estimate how much money you’ll receive. It may take more time considering local conditions.

Photograph or videotape the damage

Once it’s safe, take as much documentation as possible of structural damage, damage to appliances and furniture, standing flood water levels, and anything else that may have been damaged. It’s important to take pictures of appliance makes, models and serial numbers. Your adjuster will need evidence of damage to provide an accurate repair estimate. The more you can document the better.

Make temporary repairs and clean up

After you are finished documenting damage you can make temporary repairs and take steps to protect your property from further damage. Be sure to keep receipts for what you spend. If you need to relocate, keep those receipts as well.

Make a list of lost and damaged property

Your adjuster will need a list of what was damaged and lost. Your insurance company will likely send an adjuster to inspect your damages, and a list will make it easier for them to complete their inspection. You want to make sure they don’t miss anything.

Work with your adjuster

Your adjuster will likely visit your home to provide an inspection. They may need help from an engineer or other experts to assess damage, so be prepared for multiple visits. At the end of the inspection, the inspector should provide you with information about what you need to do and what will happen next.

For more serious damage

If your home or other areas of your property need a contractor to make repairs, it’s best to work through your insurance company to secure the services of a licensed professional. They understand the specifics of what needs to be done and often work within the insurance company’s fee structures to ensure you are not paying large sums out of pocket for uncovered repairs.

Accepting that the process can be long

All home repairs can be met with delays for various reasons, some avoidable and some not. Shortages of materials and labor after a storm are common and all of this can lead to frustration. Depending on the size of the repairs needed, it’s best to build in an extra cushion of time to your list of expectations. Rarely do repair projects get finished early and a little bit late should be where you set your expectations and that will eliminate some of the stress this type of disruption can cause.

Source: FEMA

This story was originally published September 30, 2022 at 8:38 PM.