The speed and outcome of claims settlement is rarely decided by luck – far more by the quality of the file. The insurer can only compensate what it can see and what is proven. This article is about turning a claim into a good file.
- The golden hour for documentation is the first few hours – before clean-up and restoration.
- The triple foundation: visual material (overview shots plus close-ups), an itemised list, and the related official documents.
- Value must be proven: invoices, records, photos of the pre-loss condition – half of this can already be prepared in peacetime.
Visual material: in order, two kinds
Photograph and film before anything is moved – loss mitigation naturally comes first, but the two rarely rule each other out. Good visual material has two levels: overview shots that show the site and the context (where the water came from, which way the fire spread), and close-ups of every damaged item. The phone's date stamp is a good reference point, but not proof on its own: it's worth sending the photos to the cloud or emailing them to yourself right away, and tying the time to official documents (police, fire brigade, service records). For a break-in, photograph the signs of entry before the police arrive – but do not touch them.
The itemised list
The list of damaged assets is the backbone of the claim file: description, quantity, purchase date, estimated value, condition. Kept in a table, it is easy to extend and easy to hand to the insurer. This is where order built in peacetime pays off: if you have an asset register and document order, the list takes half an hour – if not, days. For stock losses, the closing inventory count and the write-off record belong here too.
The official layer
Depending on the type of event you may need: a police report and investigation details (break-in, vandalism, theft); a fire brigade certificate (fire); an expert or service opinion (machinery breakdown, electrical damage); a statement from the utility provider (power surge, water-supply fault); and details and a statement from any third party involved. Keep every receipt for loss-mitigation costs – tarpaulins, pumping, emergency repairs: the justified portion is typically reimbursed.
Proving value – thinking ahead
The most common weakness in a claim file is not the event itself but proving value: how much was what was lost actually worth? Invoices, a capitalised asset list, a maintenance log – and one simple habit that pays off enormously: an annual phone-video walkthrough of the premises. Ten minutes, and worth its weight in gold at claim time. This is the kind of prevention the on-site loss prevention article covers – and the notification process is set out in claim notification, step by step.
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