North Texas

NBC 5 Responds Answers Your Hail and Rain Insurance Question

Major hail has hit North Texas three times in just a month, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage.

Viewers have sent questions and complaints about their insurance to our NBC5 Responds line. One big question involves what happens after you've had hail come through your home.

If baseball-sized hail comes through the roof, and then storms roll through and dump water into your home, are those two separate claims?

We talked with an industry expert as well as an attorney who represents homeowners. They tell us the water damage from the rain might be included in the original claim, but here's the caveat. After the hail storm, the homeowner has a duty to mitigate further damage.

What does that mean? You have to make a reasonable effort to get temporary repairs done – things like putting up tarps and boarding up windows. But the good news is that you can recoup those costs in your insurance claim, so keep all of your receipts. A good time to buy supplies is this weekend when emergency supplies are tax free.

If you are having an issue, you can always ask for another adjuster or their supervisor. You can also file a complaint with the Texas Department of Insurance.

TDI also has these post disaster tips.

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