Protecting your home can be costly in the event of a major storm or disaster, especially if you don’t have homeowner’s insurance. If you think you may have property damage in Florida, it’s very important to know when you should file a claim. In a Bankrate.com article titled “Filing a Home Insurance Claim,” ILG’s supervising attorney, Nicole Shacket, and other industry pros share tips and more.
There are several circumstances in which a homeowner may need to file a claim. As noted in the article, generally, consulting your policy and speaking with your insurer to know which perils are covered is a good first step to take.
With that being said, be mindful that protections can vary depending on which provider and policy you choose. For example, coverage for water damage may be tricky and is often defined with certain limitations.
“If you incur water damage from a broken pipe, you have to look at the policy documents to see if water damage is excluded or is limited,” said Nicole Shacket, a litigation attorney at Insurance Litigation Group in Florida. “Many policies limit water damage coverage to $10,000 per occurrence, but $20,000 per policy period if there’s more than one claim in that policy period.”
As soon as a loss occurs, you should consider contacting your insurance company. As there are claims processes to follow, usually the sooner you can initiate a claim, the earlier you may be able to resolve the issue.
Shacket of Insurance Litigation Group recommended that homeowners keep copies of any signed documents. “If you sign an agreement, work authorization or any type of document with a contractor, take a picture of the whole document with your phone,” she said. “Know what you signed, when you signed, with who and for what.”
To be safe, always review your policy in full and discuss any questions you may have with an agent before purchasing.
Read the full article here.
Every homeowner’s policy is different. To ensure you’re prepared for the next hurricane or major storm event, it’s critical for someone to review your policy who knows what to look for, so you can understand what you do and do not have coverage for. Contact us to get your FREE homeowners policy review from one of our experienced attorneys. Message us here
If you have experienced an insurance loss from a major storm, don’t be surprised if the insurance company’s first reaction is to claim that your damage is due to some pre-existing condition or assert that your claim is not covered under the terms of your policy or even cancel your policy based on recently-discovered “errors” in your application. But don’t worry.
At ILG, our experienced and aggressive attorneys in Florida take the time to analyze and interpret your policy and understand the full measure of damages available to you. We work with construction experts, restoration professionals and others to determine the facts.
