5 Steps to Filing a Hail & Storm Damage Insurance Claim

1. Assess the damage to the property.  Before a claim can be correctly filed, you need to know what the damage to the property is.   All Pro Xteriors is experienced at working with insurance companies on home damage claims.  We understand that your insurance may require a home inspection with photos of the damaged areas of your home.  Call (952) 486-7834 to schedule your no contact, no cost exterior home inspection.  Not only is it free, it can help you with your insurance claim. 

• Review your insurance policy.  This seems like no big deal, but it is a critical step.  You need to know what is or isn’t covered, and how other factors like depreciation and condition of your home before the storm figure in. 
• Proof of property before the storm.  While we list this step as the third step, it really should happen before the damage is done.  Take regular photos of your home and keep maintenance records to have available to share with your insurance company if needed.  In areas where storms regularly hit homes, this may be a bigger issue than in other locations.
• Contact your insurance broker.  This step always seems like it should be first, but if you don’t know the extent of the damage, and haven’t figured out whether it exceeds your deductible, you may not be ready to have the discussion with your insurance company.  Once you do contact your insurance company, they usually send out an assessor to your home.  A good thing to know is that the public adjuster they send can help you argue your claim with the insurance underwriters.  The adjuster actually sees your home and may be able to verify the recent damage and how well maintained your home seems to have been.
• Know the terminology of insurance and how insurance companies work will go a long way to resolving your claim successfully.  All Pro Xteriors may be able to help you with that.  Visit http://allproxteriorsinc.com/contact/ and let us know about your home’s damage.  We may be able to make your recovery experience much better.

How long do you have to file a claim?

Now that you know the 5 steps to filing a claim, you need to know when you have to file the claim.  Your policy will hold the answer to that, but most policies require claims to be filed within one year from the date of the disaster.  You may need to fill out and sign a “proof of loss” form.  Fill out this form as accurately as you can because it becomes  legal record of the losses you are claiming you suffered from the disaster.

What to avoid.

Since we have been talking about what you should do when you have storm damage, we should probably mention what you should not say to an insurance adjuster. 

Don’t apologize for things you never got around to doing on your home.  Avoid speculating about what might have happened.  The adjuster is a professional and will be able to draw his/her own conclusions.  Don’t sign anything until you know all the repercussions.  Get all  the facts on damages and costs and coverage before accepting any settlement offer.  $5000 may sound good for damages to your roof, until you realize the full extent of what must be done to cure the damage and how much it will cost.

Once your claim is approved, go over the details of the insurance coverage with the pros at All Pro Xteriors, and ask any questions you have about the work that needs to be done and the warranty on it.  All Pro Xteriors helps homeowners like you with their insurance concerns on a daily basis.  Call (952) 486-7834 to get the help you need.