How Do Smoke and Fire Damage Insurance Claims Work?

House fires are devastating. They’re also rare: if you’re dealing with a smoke or fire damage claim, then there’s a good chance this is your first time ever making such a claim. However, with recent heatwaves fire damage claims are expected to become more frequent.

So how do smoke and fire damage insurance claims work? The process varies for smoke and fire damage claims. Here’s the typical process followed by either type of insurance claim.

Smoke Damage Insurance Claims

Smoke damage insurance claims often occur when a fire is contained and the property is not a total loss. In this case, smoke damage may be more widespread than fire damage. A fire that was quickly extinguished in your kitchen, for example, may have caused minimal damage to the kitchen but extensive smoke damage throughout the rest of the home.

Smoke can penetrate the entire home, causing damage to fabrics, carpeting, walls, ceilings, and more. Many people are surprised to find evidence of smoke damage in distant parts of their home months after an initial fire.

If you are dealing with an insurance claim for smoke damage see these helpful tips as well.

Smoke damage insurance claims can be tricky. You need to document and photograph everything affected by smoke. Many experts recommend hiring a public adjuster for smoke damage insurance claims totaling more than $10,000.

Fire Damage Insurance Claims

Where there’s smoke damage, there’s also typically fire damage. Fire damage is covered by all home insurance and commercial insurance policies.

If your house burns down, getting a payout from your insurance company should be straightforward – assuming the fire was a legitimate accident. Your house is a total loss, and your insurance company will compensate you for that loss. However the contents inside the house and coverage for additional living expenses can get more complicated. See more helpful information about fire damage claims here.

If the fire damage was contained, however, then claims can be trickier. You need to document everything. You may need to contact a restoration specialist who can explain what can be kept, restored, or thrown out.

Consider hiring a Public Adjuster

A public adjuster is an insurance industry expert specializing in tricky insurance claims. A good public adjuster can navigate smoke and fire damage insurance claims to ensure you get coverage for everything.

When Should You Contact a Public Adjuster?

Public adjusters provide valuable service to insurance policyholders. However, it’s not always in your best interest to hire a public adjuster.

When should you contact a public adjuster? When is the right time to hire a public adjuster?
Today, we’re explaining what you need to know about when to contact and consider hiring a public adjuster.

In many situations after a loss or damages to a home or business, an insurance policyholder may be deciding if they should file an insurance claim and when to call the insurance company. There can be some crucial details in this step and a private claims adjuster may be the best first person to call for help.


Public adjusters are quite often hired early in the claims process. Some people request the services of a public adjuster immediately after they experience a loss and are preparing to make an insurance claim, for example. Others hire a public adjuster early in the claims process. Some policyholders don’t realize they need to hire a public adjuster until they get a disappointing initial settlement offer from the insurance company. 

When you hire a public adjuster, you’re engaging the services of a talented insurance industry professional. This professional will help investigate and prepare your claim, organize your documents, and negotiate with the insurance company for the highest possible settlement. At the end of the claims process, your adjuster will take a pre-arranged cut of the final settlement offer – say, a 10% to 15% fee. With most adjusters, this is the only fee you pay.

Typically, public adjusters don’t work on small claims – where the insurance payout is going to be less than $5,000 or $10,000. However, if your insurance claim involves more than $10,000, and you’re having a dispute with your insurance company over what should be covered, then contacting an experienced and trustworthy public insurance adjuster for assistance is a smart move.