New Alberto Homeowners insurance

Understanding the claims process

When something damaging happens to your home, your personal property, or a visitor, you
may need to file a claim. The first thing you should do is immediately document any
damage by taking photos. If the damage is minor – especially if it would be less
expensive to repair/replace than to pay your deductible – it may be a good idea to avoid
filing a claim. This will keep your annual premiums down and keep more money in your
pocket over time. If the damage is more than you can financially handle on your own, be
prepared for a long and complicated claims process.

You can learn more about filing claims and how to make sure your claim is honored fairly on our claims page.


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Your basic deductible may be as low as $500 per claim, but often people raise their
deductible to $1,000 or more in order to lower their premium. Raising your premium sends
a signal to your insurance provider that you are willing to share more of the financial
responsibility, which means you are a lower risk and that honoring your claims will be
less costly for the company. Most providers will reward you with lower annual premiums.
Conversely, lowering your deductible will raise your premiums because your insurance
provider wants to protect itself from your heightened financial risk to the company.

For some areas, especially areas that are prone to particularly destructive perils like
hurricanes and earthquakes, you may have a completely separate deductible. These
deductibles may be set at a flat rate (which will be significantly higher than your
basic deductible), or they may be a small percentage of your total dwelling coverage (on
average, between 2-5%). Such perils can be devastatingly destructive, and your insurance
company could potentially go under or be unable to sufficiently fulfill your claim if
10,000 homeowners in your city are filing total loss claims on a policy with a $500
deductible.