Storm damage insurance claim advice for homeowners
Although storms rarely cause homes significant damage, there are times when storms, and hurricanes in particular, lead to homeowners having to make substantial insurance claims. This will be due to the impact on the structure of the property. If your home has been significantly damaged in this way and your insurance company appoint a Loss Adjuster to your claim, it would certainly be worthwhile seeking the advice of a Loss Assessor.
Initially, your main concern will be to safeguard your home against any further damage, such as protecting an affected roof from water ingress if it rains. Taking action, for example employing a builder to erect tarpaulin over a damaged roof, would be deemed as emergency works to mitigate against further damage and would therefore be covered by your insurer. These emergency works can be carried out even before your insurer has been notified of the claim.
How we will help you with your insurance claim...
Our aim is to reduce the time our clients have to spend on their insurance claim. As you will have your Loss Assessor’s direct contact details, they will be your single point of contact throughout the claims process and you will no longer have to go through your insurance company’s call centre.
There will be many time-consuming elements to your insurance claim, with Morgan Clark on your side you can rely on your Assessor to…
Help you find somewhere you are happy to live while your home is being restored
Ensure the full extent of damage is uncovered to safeguard the value of your home
Handle all negotiations with your insurer to protect your best interests
Ensure your insurance claim is run efficiently to get you back home as quickly as possible
In the majority of cases we are able to represent our clients without charging a fee at all. Read how we are able to offer our services free of charge by clicking here.
While many insurance companies will support you in the initial weeks of your claim, their only responsibility is to ensure costs are covered to restore your property and replace damaged contents, stock, machinery etc. (if applicable). As your claim progresses, you will be left with the most stressful and time consuming day-to-day elements to organise and oversee alone if you do not appoint a Loss Assessor.
Loss Assessors and Loss Adjusters are both insurance claim professionals, but there is one key difference in their role during the insurance claim process; a Loss Assessor is appointed by and works exclusively for the policyholder, while a Loss Adjuster is appointed and paid by the insurance company. Loss Adjusters are expected to remain independent. Read more about the difference between Loss Assessors and Loss Adjusters here.
There is no reason why your insurance company or Loss Adjuster should discourage you from appointing your own Loss Assessor. If your Loss Adjuster is trying to dissuade you from using our services, you should question why they are against the idea of you being equally represented. After all, a Loss Assessor can only help a policyholder claim for what is legally within their insurance contract. Click here to read more about Loss Adjusters.
Despite all the assurances from both my broker and insurer that they had made me the best possible offer, you were still able to secure a settlement that was more than double the figures they had originally proposed. I had no idea bringing you on board would make such a big difference to the settlement.
I won’t hesitate to call you. Thanks again for the great service.
