As per 2018 data published by the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS), there were 379,600 unique incidents of residential fires in the U.S at a whopping estimated loss of $8,194,500,000.
Fire causes tangible damage through burning, as it destroys lives and homes, and causes air and water pollution. Not only the fire but smoke can cause health problems to you and your loved ones and can disfigure your property’s structure, and personal items completely. Seeing your precious home and valuables literally go up in flames can be very traumatic, both emotionally and financially.. So, for your peace of mind, you buy a home insurance policy. After the event, it will take you time to get over the horrifying experience, but you expect that on a material level your insurance company will pay whatever it costs to repair your house and belongings.
Essential steps to follow at the first signs of smoke or fire in your house:
- Leave your home immediately and then call 911!
- Contact your insurance company so that they explain the next steps and depute a field adjuster to visit you,
- Look through your policy document carefully, including the page marked as “declarations”, so that you know exactly what is available under your policy’s coverage, like your deductible, and exclusions, etc.
- Ensure that you take as many photographs as possible of all the damage.
- Prepare a list of all your items ruined by the fire.
- Work out the required repairs and damages.
- Create a folder with all the required papers like copies of police reports, purchase receipts of stuff that’s been destroyed, receipts for any payments made for temporary repairs, etc.
- Contact a reliable public adjuster who will act as your representative and will help to make your fire claim hassle-free and compensated to your satisfaction.
Most home insurance policies cover fire damage, including damage from wildfires. Once a fire occurs, a claims adjuster from your insurance company will want to investigate the damage. He will visit your home to match the description of the damage with the actual scene of occurrence.. However, the chances are that he may conduct a superficial inspection without identifying all issues such as damage to the structure of your house, the soot clinging to the walls, or even the mold that will surely make an appearance due to the moisture. Furthermore, he may not be a professional contractor, builder, or be certified in fire and water damage restoration.
Insurance companies never willingly pay more than the amount that you claim and sometimes even less. During the process of firefighting, a lot of water may have been used causing water damage to your possessions but your insurance company might refuse you any compensation for it. The insurance company will often not give a fair settlement for personal belongings that can’t be brought back to its original condition. The resulting settlement can make you very upset
It would be a good idea to utilize the services of a public adjuster who understands the intricacies of fire insurance policies. Fire insurance claims are usually very complicated. Fire claim public adjusters are not only more experienced than you in these matters, but they also have all the expertise in suitably estimating the costs incurred from fire and smoke damage. They get you an equitable settlement within the parameters of your policy.
When you work with Experienced Public Adjusters now, you pay us only a portion of the final settlement, and you will find that it’s well worth it for the saving in time and effort. Call us to discuss a fire damage insurance claim.