Insurance Tips for California Wildfire Victims
October 30, 2007
Those who became victims of the recent wildfires in California should contact their insurance carriers as soon as possible. Under most , damage that is caused by smoke or fire is a covered event. The same is true for renter’s insurance and most business insurance. Most victims will also find that they are covered against water damage due to fire fighters efforts to contain a fire.
You can help speed up the process by doing the following:
Contact your insurance agent and give as detailed description of the damage as possible.
For those who able to do so, take photos of your property before anything is moved or cleared away.
Make an inventory list of destroyed and damaged personal items. Try to be as detailed as possible and include such things as date of purchase, price of purchase, physical description of items, etc.
You are allowed to make repairs of a temporary nature in order to keep further damage to your property at a minimum. For instance, you may cover holes in the roof or cover windows that have been broken out. Keep all of your receipts for these supplies.
For those who must stay in hotels or other accommodations, keep your receipts and make a good record of your expenses.
For business owners with business interruption insurance, contact your agent as soon as possible.