Something just happened. Water on the floor, a branch through the fence, an empty space where the bike was.
Most people go straight to the same question: should I file a claim?
It is a fair question and it is the wrong one to start with, because a few of the decisions made in the next hour are difficult to undo.
The Short Version
Make sure everyone is safe. Stop the damage spreading. Photograph everything before you clean up. Call the police if something was stolen. Then, if you are unsure whether to file, call us.
Your Policy Has A To-Do List, And It Is Longer Than You Think
Buried in most homeowners policies is a condition usually titled duties after loss. It is the part nobody reads, and it is the part that decides how smoothly a claim goes.
The wording varies by carrier and form, but it generally asks you to do roughly this:
- Give prompt notice
- Notify the police in case of loss by theft
- Protect the property from further damage, and keep a record of what you spend doing it
- Cooperate with the carrier’s investigation
- Prepare an inventory of damaged property, with detail on quantity, description and value
- Submit a signed sworn proof of loss within a set period once the carrier asks for one
That last one surprises people. It is a formal document, it has a deadline, and the deadline is usually short.
None of this is a trap. It exists so the carrier can actually establish what happened. But a client who knows the list is on a very different footing from one who does not.
Stop The Damage Spreading
Of everything on that list, this is the one with a clock on it.
Shut the water off. Cover the hole in the roof. Board the broken window. Move what you can out of a wet room. The duty is generally to take reasonable and necessary measures to prevent things getting worse, which means temporary protective work, not a permanent rebuild.
Do not start the real repairs before the carrier has had a chance to look. Temporary measures protect you. Permanent ones taken too early can remove the evidence the adjuster needs.
Keep receipts for the tarp, the fan rental, the emergency plumber. Reimbursement for those measures generally applies where the loss came from a covered peril, and it typically does not add to your limit, but it is real money and you should not leave it behind.
Document It Before You Clean Up
Take more photographs than feel reasonable. Wide shots that establish the room, close shots of the actual damage, the source if it is visible, and everything that was ruined. Video while narrating works well.
Where practical, keep damaged items until someone has seen them. A box of ruined belongings in the garage is worth considerably more to a claim than a description of a box you already took to the dump.
Note when you first noticed it. Dates matter more in water and roof claims than in almost anything else.
Call The Police If Something Was Stolen
For theft, this is not optional politeness. Homeowners duties-after-loss conditions generally include an express requirement to notify the police in case of loss by theft, and the report number is often the first thing an adjuster asks for. Calling us instead does not satisfy it.
For vandalism and other property crime, a police report is strongly advisable even where the policy does not expressly demand it, because it establishes what happened and when.
A hit and run is a different matter and sits on the auto side rather than this one. Reporting to police is often tied to uninsured motorist coverage there, sometimes with its own short deadline. Treat it as urgent.
When To Report Immediately Rather Than Call Us First
Some situations should not wait on reaching us.
Report promptly when anyone is injured, when another person or their property is involved, when there has been a crime, or when the damage is plainly serious. Liability situations in particular tend to go better with early reporting. Call us as well, but do not hold the report while you wait.
When Calling Us First Is Worth It
If the damage is modest, or you are weighing it against your deductible, or you simply cannot tell whether it is the kind of thing a policy responds to, that is the call we are most useful on.
We can look at your actual deductible, talk through what the repair is likely to involve, and explain what reporting would mean. We cannot promise how a claim will affect your rate, because nobody can promise that honestly. We can make sure you are deciding with the policy in front of you instead of guessing.
The Bottom Line
This is not about talking you out of claims. You pay for the policy precisely so it responds when something serious happens, and a legitimate claim should be filed.
It is about the gap between something happening and knowing what to do next. That gap is where the avoidable problems live, and it closes with one phone call.
If something has happened, call Vantage Point Risk. The first hour is a better time than the third week.