If your home and car were affected by heavy rains, learn how to participate in insurance. Also fill in the CM Lisboa form.
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In case of flooding, caused by torrential rains, or other natural phenomena, participate in insurance it is the first step to activate the necessary compensations and return to normality. However, you should bear in mind that not all insurance covers this type of damage.
The type of insurance, as well as the respective coverage, are decisive for you to be able to report to the insurer the damage caused by floods or other types of bad weather. See how the home and car insurance and understand which situations you can receive compensation for damages.
Participating in home flood damage insurance
It is important to know what insurance you have, in order to understand if flood damage is covered.
If you own an apartment, you must have fire insurance, which covers the risk of damage to your home and common parts of the building, such as stairs, garages or the roof. However, as the name implies, this type of contract only applies to fire-related situations.
However, it is quite common for owners to opt for the multi-risk insurance, which is more comprehensive. It includes optional coverage that may apply not only to the property, but also to the contents, and may also include civil liability coverage.
Multi-risk insurance coverage includes floods, storms and electrical hazards, as well as theft and burglary.
So, if you have taken out multi-risk insurance with adequate coverage, then you can apply to receive compensation for flood damage.
Does car insurance cover floods?
It depends on the coverage you purchased. The only compulsory insurance for cars is civil liability insurance, which ensures the payment of compensation for bodily and material damage caused to third parties and to the people being transported, except for the driver of the vehicle.
This insurance applies to land motor vehicles and their trailers and has values defined by law and changed every 5 years. The minimum mandatory coverage is €6,070,000 per accident for bodily injury and €1,220,000 for property damage.
In addition to these coverages, the vehicle owner can contract others.
Therefore, only if you have additional coverage for natural phenomena can you trigger insurance if your vehicle is affected by bad weather. This covers damage caused by storms, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions or landslides, so any damage caused by these situations may be covered by the insurance.
How to report the damages of the indemnities to the insurance?
The process is now easier, as many insurers now allow you to make claims online. You must participate within the period specified in the contract or, if there is no agreed period, within eight days from the moment you become aware of the claim.
The report must explain the circumstances of the accident, the possible causes of its occurrence and the respective consequences. That is, in the case of floods, explain the date and time, refer to the fact that there was heavy rainfall and indicate the damage caused.
The importance of evidence
Providing evidence is important, so it is essential that you document, with photos or videos, any damage to your home or car.
In cases where the intervention of firefighters was necessary, you can request a report on the occurrence, which you can attach to your report. The names and contacts of any witnesses are also useful for providing proof of the accident.
When there is a flood or other natural phenomenon that causes damage, the tendency is to throw away what has been damaged. However, it is important to retain this evidence.
If you have to carry out urgent repairs (for example, installing a door or repairing the electrical system), it is essential to keep the invoices so that they can be paid by the insurance company later.
What happens after participation?
After receiving the report, the insurer will send an expert to verify the damage and calculate the amount of compensation to be paid.
Please note that, in the case of flooding, it may take several days for all the damage to be fully noticeable, so this visit may not take place immediately. In any case, the insurer has a period of 30 days to complete the process.
After quantifying the damage, the insurer proposes a value that, depending on the damage, may or may not include repair work.
Do you live or work in Lisbon? fill this form
Due to the floods that affected citizens who live and work in Lisbon, the City Council created a Mission Team to assess the damage caused by the torrential rains of recent weeks. If you are one of the people affected by the floods, you must fill in the form that the Municipality made available online until the day December 21??
If you have questions when filling in, you can go to the Parish Council or ask for support via email – [email protected] – or by phone (808 203 232 or 218 170 552).
The municipality intends to respond quickly to these citizens, but even so, it calls for them to activate their insurance and obtain the reports from the insurers, as well as to proceed with the photographic or video recording of the registered damages.
