If you suffer a loss to your home, such as a house fire or water damage, you must present an inventory of personal property to your insurance company in order to be paid for those damaged items.
In this situation, one should look into using an Insurance Claim Personal Property company to aid in documenting, valuation and presenting your contents claim.
A policy holder should look for a team of highly trained and knowledgeable researchers that locate, quote, and substantiate the claimed item’s true Replacement Cost Value (RCV).
Those experts should quote item’s current Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP), in order to confirm that the insured’s claim represents and supports the maximum dollar amount they are entitled to under their policy.
This valuation method ensures that the Insured is claiming the realistic and true value of loss, allowing them to replace damaged items in their local market, while complying with the terms and conditions of the standard HO-3 policy.
Unfortunately, the insurance carriers’ Claims Adjusters will often erroneously base their RCV findings on discount websites, temporary sale prices, and large volume discount prices. As most Adjusters do not receive any formal training on accessing and evaluating damages, they rely on self-perceived knowledge of common costs, erroneous and outdated databases, and their own desire to reduce their client’s financial liabilities.
Always remember, the Insurance Adjuster is employed by the carrier and is obligated to protect the interests of their employer.
By recognizing the Claims Adjusters’ lack of valuation training and their obligation to the carrier, it quickly becomes clear that the burden of proof lies with the Insured.
As the Insured’s retained representation, a Public Adjuster must provide an accurate and detailed claim of the damages to stand a chance of receiving a fair settlement amount.
As with any claim, carefully researched information and the use of experts and specialists will result in an accurate, compelling, and powerful document to prove the damages. Personal property claim experts utilize proven and practiced methods of valuation that consistently provide Public Adjusters with settlement amount valuations that exceed expectations.
By prioritizing compliance and accuracy and utilizing backup documentation to enable the review and confirmation of all findings, Contents Claims specialists should provide all parties with the satisfaction of knowing that the claim documents involved truly represent the amount of loss. This process results in less time spent on disputing legitimacy and more time spent on settling the claim.
Experts know exactly what information is needed to accurately document an inventory of damages, including:
- Substantiating sources
- Adding supporting documentation
- Using proprietary in-house assessment tools
- Researching the replacement value for discontinued products
- Hyperlinking to websites to substantiate high value items
Digital Inventory Insurance Claim Experts should prove the true amount of a loss and are trained to determine the depreciation of each item to evaluate its actual cash value.
