How to file a homeowners insurance claim
To file a homeowners insurance claim, first make the home safe and stop further damage where you can, such as shutting off the water. Photograph and video everything before cleanup, keep damaged items until the adjuster sees them, and call your insurer promptly. Keep receipts for emergency repairs and hotel stays, write down every call, and get the adjuster's estimate in writing.
Why it matters: A claim goes better when the photos, the receipts and the timeline were kept from the first hour.
Steps
- Make sure everyone is safe, and call 911 for fire, gas or injury.
- Stop further damage if it is safe, such as shutting off the water or covering a broken window.
- Photograph and video every damaged area and item before you clean up.
- Keep damaged items until the adjuster has seen them, unless they are a health hazard.
- Call your insurer or agent promptly and write down the claim number.
- Keep receipts for emergency repairs, cleanup and any hotel or meals away from home.
- Log every call with the date, the name and what was said, and get the estimate in writing.
Stop and call a professional if
- there is structural damage, a gas smell, or water near electrical outlets or the panel: stay out and call the right professional
- you disagree with the settlement: ask the insurer about its appeal process or your state insurance department
Questions to ask the professional
- What does my policy pay for while I cannot live here?
- Can you explain each line of this estimate?
Common mistakes
- Throwing away damaged items before they are photographed.
- Signing with the first contractor who knocks after a storm.
- Waiting weeks to report the damage.
Teach this to someone
A one page sheet for showing a friend, a teenager or a parent: what to say, what to show, and one question to check it landed.
Teach: How to file a homeowners insurance claim
What to say
To file a homeowners insurance claim, first make the home safe and stop further damage where you can, such as shutting off the water. Photograph and video everything before cleanup, keep damaged items until the adjuster sees them, and call your insurer promptly. Keep receipts for emergency repairs and hotel stays, write down every call, and get the adjuster's estimate in writing.
What to show
- Make sure everyone is safe, and call 911 for fire, gas or injury.
- Stop further damage if it is safe, such as shutting off the water or covering a broken window.
- Photograph and video every damaged area and item before you clean up.
- Keep damaged items until the adjuster has seen them, unless they are a health hazard.
- Call your insurer or agent promptly and write down the claim number.
- Keep receipts for emergency repairs, cleanup and any hotel or meals away from home.
- Log every call with the date, the name and what was said, and get the estimate in writing.
Where it stops
Stop and call a professional if there is structural damage, a gas smell, or water near electrical outlets or the panel: stay out and call the right professional.
Check question
What do you do before cleaning up damage?
Answer: Photograph and video everything. Evidence of the damage supports the claim.
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Related skills
Sources
- State insurance regulator consumer guides for homeowners, 2025. Reviewed September 28, 2026.
Written in our own words from the sources above. It is general information, not advice for your situation; where a professional, your doctor or your lease says something different, follow them.
Last reviewed . First published .