10 Ways to Ruin Your Property Insurance Claim

Since home insurance can be a complicated thing, it’s no surprise that filing a claim on your homeowners insurance can be, too—especially if you have extensive damage or a complex claim. But you can avoid some of the worst home insurance claim mistakes.
Your odds of filing a claim in 2020 might seem higher than ever. The eastern United States is heading into the peak of hurricane season, and the western U.S. has already started its annual fight against wildfires and whatever else Mother Nature throws in its path.
Nearly 6% of insured homeowners filed a claim in 2018, according to the most recent data from the Insurance Information Institute.
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Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 1: Failing to Read Your Policy
You could be forgiven for not reading your home insurance policy. After all, insurance policies can be impossible to read. But that doesn’t let you off the hook. At the very least, understand what the coverages in your policy mean.

Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 2: Not Having the Right Coverage
If you don’t have the right insurance, you could find yourself in a significant financial hole. A thoughtful conversation with an insurance agent can help you avoid these errors.
For example, if your policy has only actual cash value coverage for your possessions, and you’re expecting to be paid replacement cost, you’ll be very disappointed.
Some homeowners assume that damage from hurricane wind and flood water is covered by their home insurance policies. But that assumption could be a costly mistake. Insurance companies in hurricane-prone regions might exclude wind damage, and flood damage is generally excluded from a standard home insurance policy. A good hurricane insurance plan might actually be made up of three separate policies to ensure you have the right coverage in place.
The bottom line is that a policy’s exclusions can come back to bite you, especially if you live in an area that’s affected by natural disasters.
Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 3: Not Having a Home Inventory
Another claim mistake that starts long before you have any damage: Not having a home inventory. This complete list of your possessions will be especially crucial if you have extensive damage. If you have to work from memory, you’re likely to forget some items and fail to include them in your claim.
Sure, you’ll remember your living room furniture. But will you remember all your kitchenware and items stored in drawers and closets? A home inventory will make your claim easier and faster.
Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 4: Failing to Maintain Your Property
Home insurance is for unexpected damage, not problems that could have been dealt with.
Neglecting to maintain your home can lead to problems that won’t be covered by home insurance. For example, damage from a water pipe that suddenly bursts is covered. But a roof leak that you don’t fix could be denied because you didn’t take action to stop damage.
Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 5: Poor Communication
Poorly communicated claims by the homeowner typically result in delays, which can bog down the entire claims process. It is recommended homeowners be as clear as possible about the damage when reporting the claim. Your public adjuster should be your first form of contact regarding questions and how to present them to the carrier.

Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 6: Waiting
Damage doesn’t get better with time. Reporting a claim as soon as possible can help get repairs going sooner, lessening the time the insured is dealing with the repair process.
You may have up to one year to file a claim (it depends on the state). But, there is no benefit to waiting. If your house gets hit by a tornado or singed by a wildfire, do not wait.
Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 7: Trying to Tackle a Big Claim Alone
Large and expensive claims can be very complex and take months to resolve. In the meantime, you can be dealing with multiple insurance adjusters and stacks of paperwork.
If you have extensive house damage, you may want to hire a public claims adjuster early in the process. This is someone who works on your behalf to deal with the insurance company’s adjusters, make sure you have the right documents and to meet deadlines.
Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 8: Not Documenting the Damage
Photos are your friend when you’re filing a claim. Ideally, you’ll have “before” and “after” photos that show the extent of the damage to your home.
This is not entirely contained to damage and loss. It is the best value data to have overview photos of as many rooms in the home before loss occurs.
Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 9: Cleaning Up Too Fast
After an accident, you might be in a rush to clean up the mess. But cleaning up too fast can be a big financial mistake.
Homeowners sometimes throw away items that were damaged in a fire or flood before the total damage is documented. And they discard receipts that they need to support a claim. If you’re filing a claim for a damaged item, keep it until you have sufficient documentation that it’s been damaged, such as photos or repair estimates.
It’s important to keep a thorough paper trail during a claim. Not doing so could be a serious home insurance claim mistake.
​Home Insurance Claim Mistake No. 10: Filing Too Many Claims
Insurers will take a look at your claims history when setting your rates. Homeowners and auto insurance claims submitted in the past seven years can be found by insurers in what’s called the Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE) database. The more home insurance claims in your history, the more expensive your home insurance premiums will likely be.
That’s because insurers correlate claims to a higher risk of filing more claims in the future. Risky customers get higher premiums. So, if you can, it may be better in the long run pay for small repairs yourself rather than filing an insurance claim.