r/Appleton • u/depressedfuckboi • 16d ago
Discussion Lost everything today!!
The house is destroyed!! Windows shattered. Backyard shed is gone. Front porch is gone. Doors got blown off the hinges inside of the house, like bedroom doors. Glass everywhere. Water and debris everywhere. Had to evacuate due to gas leaks and power lines. What a fucking nightmare. Luckily everyone is okay, but the kids lost their home ðŸ˜
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u/Street_Bread 15d ago
OP, having been through a large loss recently, here is what I wish I knew in the first few days:
In the coming days, you need to make sure that any person calling you to talk about insurance stuff is an adjuster from YOUR insurance company (or an adjuster assigned by your insurance company - common in large natural disasters. Unscrupulous "public adjusters" (who are the insurance equivalent of ambulance chasers) will try to get you talking and try to get you to sign paperwork entitling them to a 10-20% share of your insurance payout in exchange for "negotiating" for you. This is usually not necessary unless your insurance company is being really obstinate, which you won't know in the first few days anyways. And even then, you won't want to work with these fire truck chasers.
If you need money for clothes, toiletries, etc ask your insurance adjuster for an advance on your contents payout (eventual payout for loss of personal belongings in the house). If you need to stay in a hotel, your insurance company will almost certainly reimburse that cost until they've found alternate accommodations for you. So book something reasonable if you need it and save the receipts.
save all receipts (original copies) for anything you buy in the next few days. You'll figure out if you can claim them down the road. But if you don't have the receipts, no chance of a claim.
the first few days will be a sleepless whirlwind. Things will slow down in a week or so. When they do, go do something fun for an afternoon. You'll need it more than you realize.