Water Damage & Flood Insurance Claims
Water claims turn on two questions the carrier decides early: what caused it, and how far it went. Both are contestable, and both are decided by evidence you may only get one chance to preserve.
Cause of loss decides coverage
Homeowners policies commonly cover water that escapes suddenly and accidentally — a burst supply line, a failed appliance, a plumbing failure. They commonly exclude surface water and flood, and they commonly exclude damage attributed to long-term seepage or lack of maintenance.
That means a claim can be reclassified from covered to excluded on a judgement about how long the water had been escaping. Where that judgement is made without adequate investigation, it is worth challenging. Flood is normally a separate policy; if the water came from outside, check whether you carry flood coverage before assuming you are uncovered.
Hidden damage is where the value sits
- Drying versus replacement. Materials that are dried to a moisture reading are not always materials that are restored — particularly cabinetry, engineered flooring, insulation and drywall behind it.
- What is behind the visible line. Water travels along framing and through wall cavities well past the stain line.
- Mold. Frequently subject to a separate and much smaller sublimit. Where mold results from a covered water loss, how it is categorised matters a great deal to what is paid.
- Matching. Continuous flooring that runs between rooms raises the same uniform-appearance question as an exterior loss.
What to document
- Photograph the source and the standing water before mitigation begins. Once a restoration crew is on site, the evidence changes.
- Keep the failed component — the hose, the valve, the section of pipe. It is the best evidence of a sudden failure.
- Keep the mitigation contractor's moisture logs and equipment records.
- Mitigate promptly and keep the receipts; most policies require you to protect the property from further damage.
Who to call, and what each one costs
Your insurance companyFree
First call, always. They assign an adjuster and issue any advance. The catastrophe adjuster assigned to you may be genuinely helpful — they also work for the insurer, which is a fact about the role, not an accusation about the person.
Your state Department of InsuranceFree
The most underused resource after a loss. They answer coverage questions, take complaints about claim handling, and confirm whether anyone contacting you is actually licensed. No cost, and they take no percentage of your recovery.
A public adjuster (that’s us)Paid
Represents you rather than the insurer, normally for a percentage of the claim agreed in writing before any work begins. Useful on scope disputes, contents inventories and undocumented depreciation — and not worth it on a small claim or a pure coverage dispute. See the questions below.
An attorneyPaid
Attorneys are there to litigate claims. That is the difference: a public adjuster works out the amount of the loss and negotiates it with the carrier; an attorney takes the carrier to court. If the carrier says the loss is not covered at all, or there is a question about causation or accusation, that is litigation and it belongs with a lawyer. A public adjuster is not a lawyer and cannot give legal advice.
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Common questions
What is the difference between water damage and flood?
Broadly, water originating inside the building — a burst pipe or failed appliance — is handled under a homeowners policy, while rising surface water is excluded and handled under separate flood coverage. The distinction is defined by your policy wording, so read it rather than relying on a general rule.
The carrier says the leak was long-term and denied it. What now?
That is a cause-of-loss determination, and it should rest on evidence rather than assumption. Ask in writing for the basis of the finding and what was inspected. Preserve the failed component.
Is mold covered?
Often it is, but subject to a separate and much lower sublimit than the water damage itself. How the mold is categorised relative to the covered water loss materially affects what is paid.
Request a claim review
Utah properties: contact us to discuss your claim.Kansas: commercial claims only.Send the basics and we will look at where your claim stands and tell you plainly what we see — including if the honest answer is that you are being treated fairly and do not need to hire anyone. There is no charge for the review and nothing to sign to get it.
Who wrote this, and what we get out of it
Public adjusting work is performed by William J. Addis, individually licensed in 18 states. Like nearly all public adjusters, we are paid a percentage of the claim, agreed in writing before any work begins and subject to any applicable state limits. There is no charge for the review itself. You should weigh that interest when reading anything here.
Free help exists too. Every state’s Department of Insurance assists policyholders with claims at no cost and takes no percentage of your recovery, and will confirm whether anyone contacting you is actually licensed — including us. See where we are licensed, and verify any public adjuster before hiring them.
This is general information, not advice. It is not legal advice, not an interpretation of your policy, and we are not a law firm. You have the right to negotiate your own claim directly with your insurer and the right to consult an attorney; you are not required to hire a public adjuster.
Our role, when we are engaged, is to help policyholders reach a fair and reasonable settlement of a covered loss under the terms of their own policy. Each claim turns on its own facts, policy language and jurisdiction. Kansas readers: under K.S.A. 40-5500 et seq., Kansas public adjusters are limited to first-party commercial property claims and may not represent residential homeowners.