Are you a business owner who needs to file a claim under your insurance policy? Building a company is hard work and you making an insurance claim can be a stressful experience.
Despite the importance of having insurance coverage, as many as 60 percent of small business owners have no insurance at all! Understanding the claims process can help you avoid major disruption to your operations.
Read on to learn the step-by-step process of how to make a business insurance claim.
Document Important Facts
Even when you have business insurance, an unexpected disaster can disrupt your business or bring its daily operations to a halt. Even a small amount of downtime can cost your business money and put you at risk of losing customers.
Before you contact your insurance company, you need to document important facts about an incident. This includes doing things like witness names, pictures, and copies of documents.
Although insurance companies will investigate each claim, it helps to have as much information as possible before you first make your report.
Contact Your Insurance Company
Contacting your insurance company is an important part of the process. You should do this shortly after the event giving rise to your claim. When you speak with a representative, document the date, time, and name of the employee.
You will also want to notate important information. This includes things like the claim number and the next steps the insurance company will take.
Each claim will have an assigned adjuster or other representative handling the file. Be sure to keep that person’s contact information handy. They will be your point of contact during the claim process.
Keep Track of Your Out-of-Pocket Costs
Your insurance team will work hard to process your claim but your involvement will help them as they do. Keeping track of your out-of-pocket costs will allow you to substantiate the value of a claim to your insurance company.
Save things like receipts and document the time you spend making phone calls and spending time away from your normal business functions. During a claim, it may be necessary for you to produce past business records for comparison to the current documents you have.
Cooperate With The Investigation
Depending on the size of your insurance provider, the company you use may have thousands of claims to process each day. One of the ways to keep your claim moving along to a resolution is to cooperate with an insurance company’s investigation.
Be quick and thorough with your responses to requests for information. This can make for an efficient process, and help you collect the proceeds of your claim faster. Avoid delaying things by not giving prompt responses when asked.
Making a Business Insurance Claim
Making a business insurance claim can be stressful. That’s because you will juggle reporting requirements and business operations. Learn how to make a claim and understand your role in the process. This will help lower your anxiety and give you peace of mind you are doing the right thing.
Contact Insured ASAP today to receive a free quote to insure your company!
