PAGE 7 Wildfires Continued Insights for Your Industry 800.426.0677 | aipnw.com Sheila E. Salvatore, Editor | Editor@AdjustersInternational.com Copyright © 2022 Adjusters International, Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Insights for Your Industry® is published as a public service by Adjusters International, Ltd. It is provided for general information and is not intended to replace professional insurance, legal and/or financial advice for specific cases. E04-1026 PROTECTING YOUR PROPERTY case if the dwelling limit is too low for reconstructing the dwelling. Even with an ample limit, however, an insured cannot expect to collect on all of its contents coverage unless the policyholder can document what was lost and how much it was worth. Insureds are encouraged to maintain inventories and receipts for all valuable items of personal property online or in a safe location. Insureds are also urged to preserve photographs of every room showing clearly what each contained immediately before the loss occurred. This documentation should be stored physically and/or electronically away from the insured location. An insured and its adjuster also want to make sure they are not precluded by insurance company reporting rules from making otherwise legitimate claims for damage to personal property. In California, insurers are allowed to provide their own contents inventory reporting forms, but they cannot require an insured to use their forms if the insured provides the essential information in another format. In the event of a total loss, homeowners in California have the option whether to claim contents losses for each individual item or by categories of items (clothing, shoes, books, food items, CDs, DVDs, etc.).⁸ In other states, if an insurer requires a specific method for reporting contents claims, an insured may not have the detailed information required to lodge a claim for an item of personal property. Such a situation could be contested in a court or with the state insurance department, but even a meritorious claim will add more time to the process of achieving a final loss settlement. Advice from Two Pros In light of what they have seen in recent years, Davis and Greenspan advise property owners to take steps they may not have considered in previous years. Davis encourages both homeowners and commercial property owners to increase their level of defense against wildfire by establishing defensible space around structures, storing water onsite for fire suppression, and moving flammable materials and supplies as far away from buildings as possible. Given the likelihood that wildfire hazards and insurance costs will be elevated for some time to come, Davis also encourages commercial enterprises to seek locations outside fire-prone areas to manage their risk of loss. As a claims adjuster, Greenspan finds that “about 80% of wildfire victims are grossly underinsured.” He urges insureds to review their policies twice a year to make sure they have enough coverage, “especially in today’s
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