Your home is the place where you should feel the safest. But, what if someone told you that your home can also face certain catastrophic dangers. Flooding, earthquakes, and fire accidents are just a few to name. However, even when your home is hit by such a disaster, you still won’t leave it be- after all, that’s your home and not just brick and mortar.
Of course, being hit by any such catastrophe could be heartbreaking and financially burdening as well. But there are a few things that you can do to safeguard and restore your home to its original state.
Keep reading to know more.
Common Scenarios That Can Damage Your Home
It is obvious that before you learn what to do when your home is damaged, you would wish to know about what could possibly cause such damage to your home. It is indeed in your best interest to know these possible reasons only to be careful and protect your home as much as possible.
Damage from fire
Did you know that fire is the leading cause of home emergency in the United States? Every year a close to 2500 billion dollars worth of damages are accounted for due to fire accidents at home. Out of all the reasons, as the experts from https://www.renpros.com/ explain, kitchen fire is the most common to cause a fire accident at home. Regardless, you certainly need to be extra careful when dealing with fire, be it cooking or heating your rooms by burning wood in your fireplace. Other reasons for fire accidents include short circuits, faulty wiring, smoking, and even curious kids can accidentally start a fire. Whatever be the reason, it is always advisable to keep fire extinguishers nearby. Besides, preparing an exit plan in case of a fire emergency can offer added safety to you and your family.
Damage from water
The next common cause of house damage is water. Surprisingly, this very resource, which is so crucial in daily routine to carry out daily chores, can lead to some of the worst health issues for your family, including the threat to life. Water could seep into walls and the foundation of your home making the structure weak. Additionally, it could also lead to mold formation in your home which could be a serious problem for asthmatic patients, particularly. It is vital to take up regular maintenance of the plumbing connections in your home. Any broken or damaged pipes should be replaced, leaking fixtures should be repaired, and the same must also be done for greywater plumbing. Water damage could turn out to be your worst nightmare if unchecked.
Hurricanes and floods
Natural disasters such as hurricanes, floods, earthquakes are another leading cause of the home emergency. In fact, out of these three, hurricanes hold the first position followed by floods and then earthquakes. The intensity of damage from tropical storms and cyclones surmount each year with hundreds of millions of dollars worth damages. Floods also wreak damage to houses accounting millions of dollars in value. Although life damage due to such disasters can be minimized with the help of better predictions, the property damages can still not be avoided. Since these disasters are a natural phenomenon, they cannot be prevented from occurring (which is probably the only way to prevent property damage). The only precaution that you can take is to plan your emergency exit route for any such calamity. Of course, the route that you must take would depend on the type of disaster that usually hits your region.
Damage due to aging
Despite all the accidents that can cause house damage, aging is something that will take a toll on our home. The roof may develop cracks to let rainwater seep in, doors and windows may begin to make creaking sounds, and even the walls may begin to show signs of cracks and other faults. In fact, the only way possible to prevent damage due to aging is proper maintenance, as already mentioned.
With so many possible scenarios threatening your home, you must be wondering what happens when your house bears the damage. Well, continue reading further and you shall find your answer.
What Happens To The House After Damage?
Most certainly, you would have all sorts of questions popping up in your mind, like how did your house sustain damage in the first place, how much does the damage is worth, and of course, what can you do next. Well, you have two options which can either be opted separately or you can choose to act on both.
- Seeking insurance claim for damage to your property
- Getting your house restored to its original state
Let’s take a closer look at both of these options.
Seeking insurance claim for damage
Before moving on, it is necessary to understand that this option is only applicable to your case if you have a valid property insurance cover. You can buy an insurance policy depending upon your property’s value and your family income. An insurance cover can provide you with monetary compensation for the damages to your property. The insurance company would consider the cause of damage, the value of damaged assets at the time of the accident, and of course, the limit of your policy cover. It is noteworthy that ordinary insurance covers do not compensate for damages due to natural acts such as a flood or a forest fire. It is, therefore, crucial to learn about the policy terms at the time of purchase. That being said, your insurance company’s adjuster would physically inspect the site of damage and evaluate the compensation accordingly. On the contrary, you can also hire your own insurance adjuster to get the rightful coverage for your damage and loss.
Getting house restoration
Regardless of whether you have an insurance policy, you would need to find a restoration service for your home. Usually, the restoration service providers consider the cause and extent of damage to your property before they suggest any course of action. For example, if your house has been damaged due to flood water, they may suggest clearing off the furniture, replacing the upholstery, and checking for molds, before they take up any structural repair work for your house.
The key difference between hiring the right restoration professionals is that they can help you at every step of the process. For instance, they may also negotiate with your insurer on your behalf, or recommend getting a better insurance cover when you are to renew your policy. Moreover, the insurer would also wish to know the extent of damages from a professional along with the cost of repair and restoration for the same. And who could be better than restoration professionals who understand the nitty-gritty of what could go wrong and how much would be the cost of the repair?
While you do have the option of working with these options separately, if you could combine both you can enjoy a bit relaxed management for your home restoration, in addition to having a streamlined restoration process. The insurer and the restoration company will coordinate with each other putting together an estimate of the damages, negotiating the policy cover, and finally putting forth a final estimate of expenses before you.
The whole process of budget management and negotiating with the insurers is simply eliminated for you. In other words, all you need to do is read the documents carefully and approve the suggested course of action. However, the most important thing to remember is choosing the right restoration professionals for the job. Rest assured you will receive your home back in its original state.