Q&A Insurance questions: Here are some answers

By PURVA PATEL

As homeowners start the claims process, they're asking a lot of questions about what's covered.

The Chronicle surveyed attorneys, the Texas Department of Insurance and other insurance experts to answer some common questions.

The answers are general in nature and can vary from policy to policy, so readers should closely read their insurance policies and talk to their agents to verify coverage:

Q: I had to throw away food at my house. Can I be reimbursed or claim that on my deductible?

A: Some policies specifically cover or exclude the loss of refrigerated or frozen food due to a power outage, said Tina Nicholson, a Houston attorney who represents policyholders. If the policy doesn't specify, she suggests adding the value of the food to your claim as damage to "contents" or "personal property."

"More than likely, the value of your lost food, standing alone, will be less than your deductible," she said. "If you add that loss to your contents or personal property claim, it will help to meet your deductible."

Q: Will insurance reimburse me for the time I spent cleaning?

A: Your time has value, and you should be reimbursed for the time you spent cleaning or removing debris as you would have otherwise paid someone to do it, Nicholson said. So log how much time you spent cleaning up and what you did.

Many insurance companies will balk at paying you for your time, she said, but you don't have to accept the company's argument that it can't put a value on your time.

"They have special estimating programs that tell them exactly how much someone in the area would charge for that work," she said. "It may be a good idea to call around and find out how much a company would charge you for cleaning or debris removal."

How successful a homeowner is may depend on how many and which other points they dispute with the insurer.

"Once you're disputing a claim, at that point everything becomes a negotiation," she said.

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