Hurricanes have been known to wreck havoc on communities and families. Hurricane warnings may be issued but that would only serve to make home owners board up their homes and minimize damages. It cannot prevent a storm from causing damaging. A basic insurance policy does not cover natural disasters. So you need to pay extra to have an insurance policy that covers natural disasters like hurricane.
The home owners-3 policy or HO-3 policy is the insurance policy that covers hurricane damages. There are exclusions however and one of them is flooding caused by hurricanes. If your home was damaged by a hurricane, you need to do the following:-
- Call your home insurance agent and report the damage. Let him know what was damaged and the extent of the damage. Since it is most likely that your home was not the house affected, you need to be a little bit patient with your agent as he may have many people to attend to.
- Make a list o all the damaged property. When you are compiling the list of damaged property, remember to write down the model and serial number. Do not forget to include receipts and invoices. This would help in the appraisal of the property. Do not throw away anything until the adjuster has appraised it.
- As you make a list of damaged property, take a proper inventory of structural damage. Get an electrician, plumber and engineer to inspect the whole house because their might be some damage that would not be visible to you. Since it is most likely that your insurance policy covers liability for these inspection, do not hesitate to do it. While you are at it, get quotes for repair work.
Having spoken about things you should do if you are a hurricane victim, it is important for you to prepare for the evil day. This is especially for those who live in hurricane prone areas. Check out the sites of different insurance companies and study their home insurance policies. Get several quotes. Compare and contrast. The extra time invested would surely pay off.