Top Reasons for a Property Insurance Claim Denial

If you believe your homeowners’ insurance claim was wrongfully denied, you have options. One of your first moves should be to seek assistance from a skilled homeowner’s insurance claims attorney who can help you navigate the reasons for the denial and assist you in moving forward with your claim. However, it is crucial to look at some of the top reasons for a property insurance claim denial.

1. Late filing

In general, any homeowner’s insurance claim must be filed with the insurance carrier promptly after an incident causes damage. Failing to file a claim in a timely manner could result in the insurance carrier thinking you waited too long, and thereby lead to a denial of the claim. In general, you can find the time limits for filing a claim located inside the insurance contract, but this language may be buried deep within the contract itself.

2. Scope of coverage

Homeowner’s insurance claims often have several exclusions included in their terms. These exclusions describe things that are not going to be covered by the policy, and they are typically located deep within the contract itself. It is not uncommon for insurance carriers to claim that the damages you sustained were caused by something that falls outside of the scope of the coverage they provide within the terms of the policy.

3. Insufficient documentation

All insurance companies require proof of damages in order to process and approve a claim. It may not always be clear what kind of evidence the insurance carrier needs to support the claim, but it is not uncommon for an insurance carrier to deny a claim and leave the policyholder wondering why. Insurance carriers are supposed to investigate any claim you make, but they may actually be waiting for you to submit evidence. The easiest way to ensure that you submit proper documentation for your claim is to work with a skilled homeowner’s insurance attorney to move forward with your claim.

4. Failure to mitigate

It is the responsibility of a property owner to take reasonable steps to prevent any damage to their home or property and to take action after an incident occurs to keep the damage from getting worse. In insurance terms, this is called mitigation. The insurance carriers expect their customers to mitigate damages, and they may deny a claim if they think that you did not do enough to prevent the damage or keep it from getting worse.

5. False statements

In general, insurance companies will send an investigator to the property for an inspection. This investigator will gather evidence and statements, examine the property, and ask questions to any person who may have witnessed the events that led to the claim. If an investigator determines that any information in your claim is inconsistent with their findings, it may result in an insurance claim denial.

Work with an attorney

If your homeowner’s insurance claim has been denied, you need to seek assistance from an attorney as soon as possible. At Dawson & Rosenthal, our skilled and qualified bad faith homeowners’ insurance lawyers will investigate every aspect of your claim and work to ensure that you are properly compensated. Our goal is to get your claim processed without it being denied in the first place. When you need a property insurance claim denial attorney in California, you can contact us by clicking here or by calling (800) 598-5017.