If you struggle with hoarding, you can put your health in danger on account of the dangerous and unsanitary conditions created by clutter. What’s worse, hoarding can make your homeowner’s insurance claims denied. That is because most risks that arise due to hoarding occur due to neglect and inadequate home maintenance.
Still, you are probably able to obtain homeowner’s insurance without difficulty. To accept or reject your petition, the insurance agent conducts a “drive-by” inspection of your property. And, unless you have piles of possessions on the lawn, you will be granted the policy.
But you may be left without coverage when you would like to renew your coverage or if an insurance agent performs a home inspection for any reason.
The Way Hoarding Affects Your Own Insurance Claim
If your home is in poor condition, the adjuster may recommend not minding your coverage. However, you may get a warning against the insurer — to fix the safety hazards and maintenance concerns in a limited time frame — or risk losing policy.
The common dangers associated with hoarding include:
- Fire — Too much clutter (i.e, newspaper, plastic, and flammable substances) could start a fire, particularly when it accumulates around heating valves, stoves, or power sockets. From the kitchen, the buildup of grease, food products, and crap raises fire danger. Click here to learn more about fire damage restoration.
- Water Damage — Due to this clutter, hoarders conduct restricted roof and plumbing maintenance, which may lead to severe water damage. Also, if water damage occurs, the excessive contents around escapes may aggravate the damage. And, even if a water loss is found, it is hard to differentiate between pre-existing and new harm. Most insurance companies don’t cover mold damage as it is considered a house maintenance issue. Stop water leaks and declutter your home to prevent mold.
- Pests — As insects and rodents are attracted to unchecked, cluttered trash, they can harm the walls, wiring, and even base, leading to dangerous living conditions.
- Trip Hazards — Excessive quantities of contents in the house creates a trip hazard to the insured and their guests.
- Blocked Exits — Belongings that obstruct or block exits make it even more challenging to escape through an emergency. It can also prevent firefighters from entering the house if a fire begins.
Also, if the time comes to file an insurance claim but your reduction was caused by one of the above difficulties, your claim might be denied. The insurance adjuster could state that the harm was not accidental. The loss could have been prevented in advance but became inescapable due to massive clutter accumulation. Another reason that your claim might be denied is that walking between rooms is a challenge, making finding the damaged area hard.
Rather than waiting for your insurance company to evaluate your house or to get a loss to happen, begin dealing with the issue immediately. With specialist hoarding cleanup services, you can declutter your home and remove dangerous living conditions. This is where PuroClean comes from. Our certified technicians will sanitize and deodorize your home to bring it to a secure and insurable condition. Speak to PuroClean of Sterling office for more information.
