What to Expect

Your insurance adjuster will complete an estimate of repairs needed to put your property back in the condition it was before the disaster. This may entail taking pictures of the damage. They can also give you names of companies to do the cleaning and restoration.

When you find a company you wish to have repair your property, they will also do an independent estimate with their own pictures of the damages. Once an agreement on the scope of the damage has been completed, a contract is usually drawn up to reference the agreed estimate. It is a good idea to bring up any additional work you may want done prior to the signing of the contract. It can be done after, but it is better if it is done up front prior to the schedule of work being drawn up.

There will be many things that you may have to make decisions on, such as:

• Paint Colors
• Carpeting
• Vinyl Tile
• Ceramic Tile
• Appliances
• Cabinet Styles
• Sinks
• Faucets

There may be other things, but it depends on the damages to your property.

Contents

The homeowner or business owner is responsible for completing a contents list. A contents list is all of the items destroyed by your damage that are not part of the building. They will want to know the age and cost of these items. They may consist of the following:

• Clothing
• Furniture
• Appliances (including air conditioners)
• Linens
• Drapery
• Personal Belongings (tooth brushes, makeup, etc)
• Food
• Pet supplies
• Area Carpets (only wall to wall are part of the building)
• Lamps
• Freestanding Bookcases
• Anything that cannot be cleaned (plastic is damage by smoke)
• Computers
• Digital Cameras

Depending on the extent of damage to your property, you may not be able to use it until repairs are complete. For the homeowner, you would usually stay at an extended living hotel and your insurance usually covers the cost of this. For the business owner, there is usually coverage for the days you are not able to operate your business.

Once repairs are complete, you may need a CO, or Certificate of Occupancy, from the town building inspecter. Inspections are usually completed at different phases of construction and repairs cannot continue until the inspection is completed.

Payments

Payments are usually made throughout all phases of the repairs. Your insurance company will issue a check, usually  called ACV. Which is Actual Cash Value. This is roughly 80% of the repair cost. If you have a mortgage on the property, then your Mortgage Company's name will be included on the check and Dunn-Rite would need that information in order to process the payment. The check would be issued in the name of the Owner, Mortgage Company and Repair Facility. This is then signed by the owner and repair facility and forwarded on to the Mortgage company.

The Mortgage company will usually issue 1/3 of the total up front in order to begin repairs. Once repairs are 50% complete then the next third is issued. Once repairs are 90% complete then they issue the remaining third that they are holding. Once repairs are fully complete, there is a Certificate of Satisfaction to be signed by the property owner. Then Dunn-Rite sends that to the insurance company and they issue the 20% that they initially held back (called the holdback).

That check will also have all parties names on it.

Paperwork From Your Mortgage Company

There are several papers your mortgage company may need in order to process payments for repairs. They may consist of some or all of the following:

• Owners Affidavit
• Contractors Affidavit
• Lien Waiver
• Certificate of Satisfaction
• Letter of Authorization (to speak to your contractor)
• Copy of the Estimate
• Their own inspections (depends on amount of damage)

The sooner you are aware of what is needed, the sooner your property can be restored back to it's original condition. Then your life can get back to normal. There is a lot of work involved when disaster strikes. You don't realize how much until you are going through it.

 

Call us at 860-951-6387