IINC Offers Insurance Recovery Advice

With displaced residents of the Angora fire area now returning to their neighborhoods, several home and business owners are now finding themselves facing dozens of questions before they rebuild.

To help navigate the insurance recovery process, the Insurance Information Network of California offers the following advice to those whose property has been damaged or destroyed:

• Call your insurance agent or insurance company and report the damage. Most homeowner policies cover additional living expenses and will advance money if there is a need for temporary shelter, food or clothing. For insurance claim contact numbers, please visit the IINC Web site.

• If your home or business has been damaged but not destroyed, make temporary repairs where possible to prevent any further damage. Save receipts for supplies and materials purchased as the insurance company will reimburse for any reasonable expenses for these temporary repairs.

• Prepare for the adjuster’s inspection. Take the time to inspect the property in advance and note anything that you would like the adjuster to see. Provide the adjuster with a list of the damaged items, photographs, receipts, bills and any other relevant paperwork. Doing so will help the adjuster correctly determine the value of destroyed property. Information on how to create an inventory and free inventory software is also available at the IINC Web site at www.iinc.org.

It is important for those filing an insurance claim to maintain a calendar of benchmark dates for decisions on rebuilding and completing the recovery process.

Over the next several months, they may face deadlines for replacing possessions lost in the fire, and should keep in mind completion dates for additional living expenses set out in their policy contracts as they schedule their rebuilding effort.

To view a copy of the brochure, “Settling Insurance Claims After a Disaster,” visit the IINC Web site at www.iinc.org or click here. IINC is a non-profit, non-lobbying insurance communications association.