HOW TO READ YOUR INSURANCE CLAIM PAPERS

20 May HOW TO READ YOUR INSURANCE CLAIM PAPERS

Insurance companies have made reading and understanding your insurance claim nearly impossible for homeowners these days. Not understanding your insurance claims papers could end up costing you thousands.

We have a way of explaining the entire process that makes it much easier, ensuring that homeowners are in complete control of their insurance money.

R.C.V. = REPLACEMENT COST VALUE:

The replacement cost value is your insurance companies way of saying; “Hello Mr./Mrs. Homeowner, we are agreeing that it should cost you this amount to repair all of the damages according to the adjusters summery.”

DEDUCTIBLE:

The Deductible is your insurance companies way of saying “Uh Oh, here is the catch. Mr./Mrs. Homeowner, out of the R.C.V. amount that we owe you, “you are responsible for the deductible amount”. So, we are backing the deductible amount out of the R.C.V. money and we are keeping it.”

Unfortunately, policy holders will not be able to recover deductible amounts. You agreed to be responsible for this amount when you signed your policy and purchased your insurance coverage. This allows insurance companies to deduct this amount out of each claim total.

DEPRECIATION:

Depreciation is your insurance companies way of saying, “Mr./Mrs. Homeowner, now that we have backed out your deductible, we are now going to keep some of the remaining money, until you actually do the work. Until you do the work this all that we owe.

*Until you actually complete the work, your insurance company only owes you for the “value of the damaged items as is.” They will not be able to pay out the replacement cost until you actually replace the damaged items.

ACTUAL CASH VALUE:

The actual cash value is your insurance companies way of saying: “Mr. /Mrs. Homeowner, now that we have backed out your deductible and a recoverable depreciation, this is the amount that we owe you, until you complete the work.

*Once you actually complete the work and prove to them the work has been completed, they should immediately release all depreciation. Most policy holders typically receive their reimbursement within a couple weeks of completing the work.

What to do:

Long story short, your insurance money is your insurance money. Not your contractors. Contractors are banking on the fact that you do not understand your claim and are hoping you will just let them do everything for you. Do not be fooled. Claims are not as hard as you think. They are just written confusing.

How Much Am I Getting:

A quick rule of thumb for determining exactly how much your insurance company will be paying you in total, is to add together the amount of your first check (A.C.V) to any recoverable depreciation amount being held back. Those 2 amounts added together is how much you will be getting in total from the insurance company after the work is complete.

Compare that amount to your written roofing estimates to ensure you have been paid enough.  If the roofing company was honest in their estimate and wasn’t just trying to get all your insurance money, then you should have been paid enough to cover their estimate.

If your roof estimates are higher then your adjusters estimate, with a quick review, your insurance company should have no problem agreeing to cover the additional amount.

Congratulations! You are now ready to file your claim. Don’t be nervous. There’s nothing to it. Just keep moving forward and this will all be over before you know it.