Want To File A Home Insurance Claim? Follow These Simple Steps

Taking an insurance policy on your home helps you in protecting your investment. Your home can get damaged due to weather conditions, fire, theft, or even by a third party. In these circumstances, an insurance policy will come to your aid and help you reduce your expenses. You must file a claim with your insurer if you are in any of these situations.

Filing a home insurance claim is easy. You need to submit the required documents and evidence of damage. If you cannot stay in your damaged home, you can also claim to pay for your temporary accommodation. 

Steps To Follow For Making Your Home Insurance Claim

As you have understood the importance of having home insurance and what it protects you from, here’s the process for filing a claim.

1. File a report to start your insurance claim process – The first step in filing a home insurance claim is to call your insurance company. You should contact them as soon as you notice damage to your home. All major insurance companies have 24/7 customer support. You can call them anytime to ask for proper guidance to file a claim. Inform your insurer clearly about the nature of the damage and follow their guidelines to complete the process.
2. Keep the required documents ready – You will be asked to submit some documents to process your claim. You need to keep all these documents prepared to support your claim request. If you cannot provide any documents as required by the insurance company, then there is a good chance that your claim might be rejected.
   • A duly filled claim form
   • FIR or Fire Brigade report (in some cases)
   • Building plan
   • KYC documents
   • A signed, cancelled cheque (to receive the approved claim amount)
   • Bills or receipts from contractors
3. Collect evidence to back up your insurance claim – You need to back up your claim with proper evidence. Submitting the right evidence is crucial, as it will help you to get your claim approved. You can take photos and videos of the damage sustained by your home and submit them as evidence. CCTV footage is also a good piece of evidence. The evidence can be used in court to file a case against the insurer if your claim is rejected. You can also use the evidence against any third party involved in the damage.
4. Involve proper authorities – If your home gets damaged due to fire or theft, you should notify the appropriate authorities. You will need to submit the official reports with your claim application.<br>In case of theft, an FIR must be filed at the local police station. Always mention the correct value of your belongings in your FIR. Do not provide misinformation, as there will be an official investigation into your case. If your home has been damaged by fire, notify the fire department immediately. You must take a copy of their official report and submit it to your insurer.
5. Damage by the third party – If a third party has damaged your home, you can make them pay for the repairs by filing a claim. All you need to do is inform your insurer, and they will take it up with the third party’s insurer. You must submit proper evidence to support your claim to get compensation from a third party. You can prepare a witness list, show photographs and submit video footage as evidence. If the third party raises a dispute against the claim and there is no amicable solution, you can approach the court for compensation.
6. Send an estimate to your insurer – This is another critical step in your home insurance claim process. As a homeowner, you will need to send an estimate for repairs to the home to your insurer. This estimate needs to be sent while filing the claim. Call a contractor to assess the damage and get an estimate from him. A reliable contractor will help you get an accurate estimate for the cost of repairing your home. Send this estimate to the insurer with your claim form and other documents. It is a good idea to start the repair work after getting the go-ahead from your insurer. Also, keep the contractors’ bills and receipts handy so you can submit them if needed.
7. Visit from the Surveyor – The last step in the home insurance claim process is the appointment of a surveyor for your claim. A surveyor will be appointed to assess the damage and verify the claim. A few things you should remember when the surveyor visits your home for an assessment are
   • Provide factual information to the surveyor, as wrong information can cause your insurance claim to get rejected.
   • Give details of how the damage was caused and back your story with evidence.
   • Do not hide any crucial information regarding the claim from the surveyor.
   • Always give the correct estimate of the property loss or repairs.
   • Do not exaggerate the property price to claim higher compensation. This might lead to claim rejection, and you may even face legal issues.

Conclusion

Every homeowner should take a home insurance policy to protect their investment. Your home insurance policy will protect your home from damage due to burglaries, fire accidents and weather conditions. If your home has suffered any damage, you can report it and submit a claim form for compensation. The process for claiming compensation is simple. You must present proper evidence to support your claim and submit some documents. Just remember to provide accurate information so that your claim gets approved quickly.

If you want to learn more about the home insurance claim process or if you want to explore different home insurance plans, visit the Piramal Finance website. You can ask for assistance from finance experts and get your queries answered.