Embedded Files
Back Home In Indiana to Help
Back Home In Indiana to Help
My career eventually took me from Indiana to Florida, where hurricanes, catastrophe losses, and a complex property-insurance environment became a regular part of my work. Over more than two decades in property claims, I have seen what happens after major disasters—not only the physical damage, but the confusion that follows.
I came back to Indiana at the request of family and friends who wanted help understanding what they were facing with their insurance claims. The more I looked at what was happening here, the more concerned I became. Property owners are being asked to make important decisions while trying to understand coverage, estimates, damage, repairs, and sometimes conflicting information about what their policies actually provide.
That is why I am here. If something does not add up, we will look at it. If something was missed, we will document it. And if a policyholder needs experienced representation, we are ready to help.
— Carl J. Lucid
Your Duties After a Loss
Your Duties After a Loss
Most property policies require the insured to take certain steps after a loss. Those duties can affect the claim, and the exact requirements depend on the policy. Common obligations include giving prompt notice, protecting the property from further damage, documenting the loss, preserving damaged property when practical, keeping receipts and records, and cooperating with the investigation. Indiana IDOI gives similar claim guidance, including prompt notice, photographs/video, temporary repairs to prevent further damage, preserving damaged property, and keeping receipts.
1. Document the Damage
1. Document the Damage
Before cleanup or repairs begin, photograph and video the property thoroughly. Start with wide shots that show the overall condition, then take close-up images of individual areas, damaged materials, contents, water lines, openings, and anything that may help show how the loss occurred. Document each affected room and exterior area from multiple angles whenever it is safe to do so.
The goal is to preserve a clear record of the condition immediately after the loss—before cleanup, removal, or repairs change what can be seen and evaluated.
2. Preserve Property & Records
2. Preserve Property & Records
Keep damaged materials, components, and contents when it is safe and practical to do so. If something must be removed because of safety, sanitation, or emergency mitigation, photograph it thoroughly first and preserve representative samples when possible. Keep all receipts, invoices, estimates, mitigation records, contractor documents, correspondence, and other claim-related records together in one place.
Once damaged property is discarded or records are lost, the opportunity to inspect, verify, measure, or document that part of the loss may be gone. Preserving the evidence helps support what was damaged, what work was necessary, and what costs were actually incurred.
3. Identify What Happened
3. Identify What Happened
Document where the damage began, what caused it, how it entered or affected the property, and the path the damage followed. Look for conditions such as roof openings, fallen trees, broken windows, plumbing failures, rising water, sewer backup, fire origin areas, or other visible evidence that may help explain the loss.
The cause of the damage can directly affect how the policy responds. Preserving evidence of what happened helps prevent important facts from being replaced later by assumptions about the loss.
4. Protect Against Further Damage
4. Protect Against Further Damage
Take reasonable temporary steps to prevent the loss from getting worse when it is safe to do so. This may include tarping damaged roofing, boarding openings, moving vulnerable contents, extracting standing water, using drying equipment, or securing damaged areas. Photograph the condition before temporary work begins and keep receipts, invoices, and records for all emergency measures.
Why this matters: most property policies require the insured to take reasonable steps to protect the property after a loss. Failing to mitigate additional damage can create disputes over what was caused by the original event versus what happened afterward. Properly documenting temporary protection helps preserve the claim and shows that reasonable steps were taken to prevent further damage.
Understand What Your Policy Actually Covers
Understand What Your Policy Actually Covers
A major storm can involve more than one cause of damage. Wind, rain, roof openings, surface water, flooding, sewer backup, plumbing failures, fire, and resulting interior damage may all be treated differently under an insurance policy.
Before accepting that damage is “not covered,” that you had the “wrong insurance,” or that everything has already been addressed, make sure the actual policy, endorsements, cause of loss, inspection findings, and damage have been reviewed together.
Coverage should be evaluated from the policy and the facts of the loss—not from a label placed on the claim.
Flood & Water Damage: Understand the Coverage Before You Accept the Answer
Flood & Water Damage: Understand the Coverage Before You Accept the Answer
There is one National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), administered by FEMA. But within an NFIP policy, building coverage and contents coverage are separate coverages. What was purchased, what property was damaged, how the water reached the property, and what caused the damage all matter.
Before accepting “you have the wrong coverage,” find out exactly what coverage you purchased, what caused each part of the damage, and what each applicable policy actually provides.
Page updated
Report abuse