In the United States, there is an average of 346,800 residential fires each year. Fire is one of many damages that can happen to your rental property.
Disaster can strike at any moment, no matter how well you prepare to protect your property. Luckily, landlord insurance can cover your losses.
The true test of your insurance’s value comes when you file a claim. Will the insurance company cover the costs of my damages? What problems may I run into while filing my claims?
In this post, we’ll review how to file a landlord insurance claim. We’ll review the tips you need to remember to make the process as simple as possible.
What is Landlord Insurance?
Landlord insurance is a policy that protects property owners when renting out their apartments, condos, or homes. This insurance covers a variety of problems that could occur to the property.
When to File a Landlord Insurance Claim
It’s important to know when you may file an insurance claim and what your insurance covers. This will guide you when you are filing your landlord insurance claims.
Your insurance will cover a variety of damages on your property. These damages may include vandalism, burglary, weather, or fire. The insurance also covers damage that a tenant has done to your property.
The dwelling coverage feature of landlord insurance will cover your cost of repairs. They will also cover the repairs of any other structures on the property.
Liability Coverage will protect you against liability claims or lawsuits. Your insurance will cover medical expenses of injuries that happened on the property.
If a tenant is displaced due to damage to the property, the insurance will cover the fees. This part of the policy offers temporary rental reimbursement.
It’s also important to know what insurance companies will not cover. So, here is a list of claims that landlord insurance will not be covering.
You will pay out of pocket for expenses like AC repairs or dishwasher replacements. Theft and damages to your tenant’s belongings do not have coverage. There is no coverage for incidents like floods, water backup, or earthquakes.
How to File a Landlord Insurance Claim
You need to assess your damage a soon as possible. Take notes of the severity of the damage and make sure that your tenants are okay. Call the authorities if necessary.
Once you know everyone is safe, start taking documentation of the damages. You should take videos and various pictures of all the damage.
Additionally, write down all the things that may be missing. If you had to file a police report, make sure you have copies of the report. Police reports are crucial for incidents of theft or vandalism.
You will need to contact your insurance agent as soon as possible. Most reputable insurance agencies will be available after regular business hours and days. After contact, they will provide you with forms and information.
Be aware that an adjuster will be coming to your property to assess the damages. Do not touch any of the damages and alert your tenants about it too.
You should be able to file out the insurance form claims with ease. You can use the documentation that you have as your guide. If you are having trouble an insurance partner can assist with your questions.
After submitting the forms, you should keep the documents you have collected. Sometimes after submitting documents other problems can occur such as a legal claim.
How to Handle Denied Landlord Insurance Claims
There are two types of denial of claims which are wrongful and fair. Wrongful denial occurs when your insurance company should cover the costs of your damages. Fair denial of insurance claims occurs when your insurance does not cover your claims.
It can be frustrating when your insurance denies your claims. Here is a list of reasons why insurance companies deny claims.
Insurance will not cover damages of a property that has been vacant for more than 30 days. Vacancy damages include vandalism, fire, and water damage.
Your insurance will not be covering wear and tear. Wear and tear damage is damage that occurs over years of neglect.
Insurance will not cover damages that happen accidentally to your property. Regardless of who causes the damage, your insurance will not cover it.
You should consult with a public adjuster if you believe your claims have wrongly been denied. The public adjuster will inform you if the denial was wrongful or fair.
To prevent insurance from denying your claims, hire a public adjuster prior to filing. This will save you time and frustration of fair claims denial.
How to Prepare for Landlord Insurance Claims
While renting out your property, there is always a chance that
an incident may happen. Planning can ease your mind for these situations.
Before tenants move in take documentation of the property. Take pictures and videos of the property for references. These documents will allow you to accurately assess property damages.
You should make a list of the valuables inside of your property. This may include the prices of appliances, furniture, or decor. Also, keep the receipts of any upgrades of the property you may do.
Preparation will allow you and your public adjuster to properly assess your damages. It also promotes ease and efficiency in fixing the damages.
Learn More
We broke down how to prepare, file, and repeal landlord insurance claims. There is a variety of other information out there about property management.
If you want to learn more about property management, contact us at Reedy & Company. Here at Reedy & Company, we have 20 years of experience leading property management companies. Give us a call today.
