A horrible storm brushed through your area. It knocked a tree on top of your roof and left your house flooded. You can’t pay to fix the damage out of pocket, so you reach out to make a claim with your insurance company.
A claim that ends up getting turned down. What are you supposed to do when your insurance claim is denied? Can you fight it and get the money you deserve?
The answer is yes. If you don’t like your insurance company’s decision, you can file an appeal. We won’t lie, though, the process isn’t easy.
That’s why we’re here to walk you through it. Keep reading to learn more.
Why The Insurance Company Denied Your Claim
There are several reasons why your provider denied your home insurance claim. It’s possible that the disaster wasn’t covered under your policy or you may not have finished your paperwork on time. You’ve only got a small window of opportunity to file your claim.
Non-Covered Disaster
Let’s say that a storm blew through your area and flooded your home. You’re up to your ankles in water, and most of your possessions didn’t go unaffected.
There’s a good chance that you’ll get hit with a denied home insurance claim. The reason being is that flood damage isn’t covered under most regular homeowners’ policies. You have to get separate coverage for it.
Negligence
As a homeowner, it’s your responsibility to keep up with your property. Failing to do so could end in a denied insurance claim. For example, your roof takes heavy damage during a wind storm.
Upon inspection, the insurance company discovers that many of your roof shingles are rotting and falling off. They’ll turn down your claim because they’ll view the damage as your fault.
If you’d kept up with your regular roof maintenance, it would have been able to stand up better in the storm.
You Don’t Have Enough Coverage
Your home is thoroughly trashed. After calculating all the damages, it’s going to take over 300,000 dollars to rebuild and fix everything.
If your policy is only set to cover 200,000 dollars worth of damage, there’s a good chance that you’re going to get hit with a claim denial.
You Didn’t Finish Your Paperwork in Time
One of the main reasons why homeowners get denied is paperwork delay. After the damage happens, you have to be on it about filing your claim.
The length of time you have to make your damage report varies from company to company. You’ll want to look into your policy to find out how long you have.
Filing Your Dispute
So, you’ve been careful to avoid all the things that will end in a claim denial, but your insurance company still won’t budge. If this is the case, it’s time to start the steps toward filing a dispute.
Review Your Policy
Before you get in touch with your insurance company or visit Shochet Legal, it’s important that you review your insurance policy. You need to know the ins and outs of what’s covered under your plan.
Otherwise, you end up making a flood damage dispute when your policy doesn’t actually cover flood damage. That’s not going to look good on you.
You’ve also got to make sure you didn’t overestimate your coverage amount. Again, your claim will most likely get denied if the damage to your home is more extensive than what your policy can handle.
If you don’t understand why you were denied after looking at your policy, read the denial letter. Most insurance companies will give you a list of reasons why they turned down your claim. If there doesn’t seem to be a specific reason for their decision, you can move forward with filing your appeal.
File Your Appeal
As soon as your claim gets denied, the clock starts speeding along. You only have a certain amount of time to get all your paperwork turned in if you want your appeal to go through.
Keep in mind that when you make your appeal, your original claim request is going to become eligible for review again. If you have any evidence that you can turn in, that would help your case. Take pictures of the damages and if you’ve had any contractors come in to work on your home, attach receipts to your appeal.
Contact a Professional
To get the most out of your claim, we recommend hiring a public adjuster. It’s their job to go over your policy to look for anything that you may have missed. They’ll also take note of all your home damages and negotiate a settlement with your insurance company.
If hiring an adjuster doesn’t get the insurance company to budge, it may be necessary for you to sue. In this case, hire a professional lawyer with experience in property insurance.
File a Complaint
If you’ve always been a good client that pays their premiums on time, your insurance company owes you a fair consideration for your claim.
If you feel like you haven’t gotten the type of treatment that you deserve, you can file an official complaint. Turn in the proper forms with your state’s insurance commissioner.
Knowing What to Do When Your Insurance Claim is Denied
There’s no worse feeling than seeing that your insurance claim is denied. Most people don’t have the money in their pocket to cover extensive housing problems when disaster strikes.
The good news is that you can appeal their decision to get the cash that you need. We hope that reading this article has set you on the right path. For more ways to navigate your way around the world of insurance, feel free to explore the rest of our blog.
