You have just experienced a property damage claim (fire, water, wind, hail, etc) to your home or business. So what do you do now? Do you immediately start cleaning up the mess? Do you start making repairs? Where will you live or relocate while repairs are taking place? There are things that you must do after you have an insurance claim, and things that should not be done.

If filling out claim feels like this 

Here are some things that you should know right away that will help you with the process.

Question:

If I have a property damage claim or third-party claim, is there anything I should know right away?

Answer:
First, you have a duty to mitigate damages. In other words, you have to do what you can so that the condition does not get worse unnecessarily. The second thing is that you must preserve all of the evidence you will need for your property damage claim and do not throw anything away until told to do so by the carrier or your counsel. Ideally, your insurance company will inspect the loss immediately so this will not be an issue. If an immediate inspection is not feasible, store all damaged items until they are inspected.

The third things to know is that you must save all receipts, invoices, estimates for everything associated with the claim. If you have to purchase a new toothbrush or batteries or deodorant, save the receipt!

Fourth, take pictures! Do not make any repairs without taking pictures of all the damage and damages items. Believe it or not, insurance companies don’t always take your word for it and a well documented loss is easier to resolve.