Winter’s Coming! Is Your Property Prepared?

For home and commercial property owners, winter signals a time for additional vigilance to reduce the possibility of damage or loss. Storm damage insurance claims rise during the first quarter of the year, due to issues caused by snow and ice. Freezing temperatures, partial thawing, and later refreezing can cause immediate and hidden damage to your home or commercial property. Here’s what you can do now to protect your investment, and literally, weather any winter storm.

Unlike what you might think, most storm damage claims do not result from blizzards. Overlooked property maintenance can be exacerbated by even a minor snowfall. Now is the time to take a hard look at your structure and its systems to ensure that these are in optimal shape.

• For example, if your roofing is flat, inspect its membrane carefully and be sure to patch areas that appear thin or worn. Shingles on pitched roofing generally have a 20-30 year life span. Inspect yours to see if there are any rippled or cracked shingles and replace immediately. Tip: if you’ve installed solar panels over your roofing, be sure to check that the caulking is sound, to avoid interior leakage, and subsequent damage/losses.
• Snow removal: heavy snowfalls can damage structures. For pitched roofing, use a snow rake to remove the extra weight from detached garages and homes. For flat roofs, have your maintenance company on speed dial!
• Avoid interior damage from burst pipes by wrapping in thermal insulation. Do not forget to wrap your water heater and ensure that the boiler room is well insulated as well. And if your hot water heater is over ten years old- replace it. Do not forget to turn off your lawn sprinkler system and any other supply lines not in use during the winter months.

We hope these tips can save you headaches and storm damage claims this winter. Alongside your phone contacts for your storm damage insurance adjuster should be ours: United Public Adjusters. We will be your best ally to make certain you receive the highest settlement for your damages. Best of all, we do not charge any upfront fees.

Consult with us now! Our team is available to answer your questions at (800) 718-5677.