In light of a natural disaster and devastation, it is important to remember what steps to take to help your house rebuild afterward.
You have two options to rebuild after a natural disaster strikes. The first is to rely on insurance payments to do all the work for you if your deductible is not too high. The second option, and most important, is that you document any damage in order to file claims with the insurance company if the time comes.
Check out our four best tips on how to deal with a natural disaster:
- Document the Damage
- Contact Insurance Provider
- Know Your Coverage Limits
- Find a Contractor to Help You Rebuild
Document the Damage
If you are like most people, you will only find out about a natural disaster when you begin to notice damage to your home. It is important that you get out pictures or special video footage of any damage done to your house. Make sure that all damage is documented before it can hinder the rest of your home rebuilding process.
Documenting the damage means that you take pictures or videos of all of the damage. If you are talking about items that were damaged in your home, including the item and where it was damaged. That way, when you contact your insurance company, they will know what kind of damage occurred and how much it will cost to fix.
Take pictures with a timer so that you can include yourself in the picture; this is your proof that the damages occurred during or after a natural disaster. You could also get video footage with your smartphone or digital camera.
Contact Insurance Provider
Once you have documented the damage, it is time to contact your insurance provider. While this may be confusing, it is important that you do so in a calm and collected manner. Make sure that you do not panic because you may be tempted to skip this step.
You may be wondering what should you tell your insurance provider during the process. You should give them as much information as possible such as the type of damage and how much it will cost to fix it. If your home is not insured, you need to have an estimate from a licensed contractor for remodeling. This will help speed up the rebuilding process so that you can focus on getting back to normal life as soon as possible.
You will want to at least know what kind of coverage you have before you begin talking about what went wrong during or after a natural disaster. A lot of people do not know if they have enough coverage, or if their deductible is high enough for all of the damages done to their home. By making insurance claim questions as soon as possible, you can avoid any problems later on down the road. Hopefully, your home can be rebuilt to pre-disaster status within a reasonable amount of time.
Know Your Coverage Limits
You will also want to know your insurance limits before you begin making claim questions. You will minimize the amount of frustration you feel when you talk about what went wrong and how much it will cost to fix everything. Having all of this information beforehand will help keep your stress down while making the rest of your rebuilding journey go a lot smoother.
You should get yourself some kind of home inventory list so that if disaster strikes again, you can take pictures and include them in the list. The list will allow you to know how much certain equipment and fixtures are worth. Make sure that you get a home inventory list that has pictures of everything listed on it so that you can refer back to it if necessary.
Make sure that you store your home inventory list in a safe place, such as a fireproof or waterproof safe. It will help speed up the rebuilding process when the time comes if your insurance company does not have to question the value of your home’s contents.
Find a Contractor to Help You Rebuild
You will also want to find a contractor when deciding on what to do with your home rebuilding. This contractor can be a friend or family member of yours who you know will help you rebuild as quickly as possible. You can also find contractors from online resources that offer similar services, just make sure that the contractor is licensed and has worked on homes before.
Before hiring any contractor, make sure that you check the company’s reviews by reading consumer feedback from other customers.
Conclusion
You have done a great job of keeping yourself and your family safe during natural disasters. Take the time to check all of your insurance company options, documentation for your claims, and rebuilding process with a few steps. You will be able to get back to recovery mode as soon as possible so you can continue to rebuild on your own.