Disasters or natural
calamities are both unforeseen and unpredictable. If
you live in Illinois, you’re most likely to be
affected by tornados, floods and earthquakes. And if
this means your property is damaged or destroyed, you
will have many concerns: concerns about where to stay
temporarily, emergency repairs and how much it will
cost you to rebuild your house.
Before calamity is king: Your protection against a
disaster is, as you know, homeowners or renter’s
insurance. Whether you own property or rent it, you
must have appropriate insurance coverage for yourself,
your property and your personal belongings. Check to
see if your landlord has any protection against damage
in such situations, though his insurance won’t
cover your personal precious things.
Here’s what you can do before disaster
strikes and damages your property:
• Make an inventory of all your personal property.
Make a list of all model and serial numbers of expensive
products such as a TV, VCR, computer, etc. Maintain
receipts of these items as they prove your ownership.
You can also take videos of the inside of your home
to show which products you owned before disaster struck
and damaged your home.
• Do you have photocopies of your insurance policies
kept in a safe location before disaster could strike?
Important papers must be kept away from the site of
damage so that you can use them to save your property.
• Keep your insurance person’s name and
telephone numbers handy and away from the scene of disaster.
Also, familiarize yourself with the details of your
insurance policy. When it comes to your property, ensure
you understand the difference between actual cash value
(ACV) and replacement cost coverage for your damaged
contents.
After disaster, deluge and damage:
Contact your insurance company once disaster has struck.
Supply as much detailed information as you can about
the damage to your property. Your insurance company
may put out the procedures for filing a claim on the
radio, TV or in the newspapers.
If no one from the company comes to you once you have
made initial contact after the disaster, claiming damage
to your property, ask to speak to the claims department.
To be in the thick of things, you need to fully understand
your rights and duties. First, accept that you will
be emotionally spent, so ask a friend to help you out
with routine household chores.
Makeshift arrangements: In order to
save your property from any further damage, make temporary
repairs such as patching holes in the walls or roofs
as soon as you can. Here’s a little friendly help
on how to make temporary repairs to your property after
the disaster:
• Get in touch with your insurance company for
emergency money for temporary repairs to cover all damage
to your property.
• Take photographs of the disaster and the extent
of damage to your property before you began cleaning
up and repairing it.
• As a property owner, it is your duty to safeguard
your property against damage and disaster.
• Keep all bills pertaining to the expenses incurred
due to the disaster? Don’t dispose of items relevant
to your damaged property.
• Before you give out your house for damaged property,
ensure you get prior agreement from your insurance adjuster
on the disaster.
• If your house is so badly damaged after the
disaster that there is too much water all over your
home, try to sweep it out and air out your property
to dry.
• Take an inventory round your property to see
the extent of damage after the disaster. Look for metal
objects that might have rusted by spraying them with
oil. Call in an electrician to check all electrical
equipment.
Call in an adjuster from your insurance company to
come to your home, examine your property and write out
a report of all that is damaged or a written damage
estimate for the company. Get his name and telephone
number in case you need to contact him. Be sure to get
a copy of the estimate report and keep it safely. Also,
do not hesitate to ask questions if you don’t
understand anything. For further questions, contact
the Division of Insurance.
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