by Karen Stang
Thunderstruck? Ever been jolted awake by lightning hitting your home? I have! It was a rainy morning in October. Technically, the lightning did not strike our house, but rather, struck the ground close by. We literally jumped out of bed!!
Here is a list of items impacted by the storm:
- Larry’s big screen TV – 80”! But size doesn’t matter!
- Both garage door openers
- Newer dryer! It spun, but no longer dried!
- Under-cabinet lighting
- Heated mattress pad
- Home automation
- And more!
As you can see, many items were impacted without regard to any sort of order or location in our house. We made a claim with our insurance, and here are some tips if something like this happens to you!
Recommended Tips from Insurance Provider
- First, make sure you and your family are safe and get emergency help if needed. Make sure you are not in immediate danger. Check for fires or other damage like broken windows. We smelled ozone in the basement, but no fires or smoke.
- Second, call your insurance agent asap! Determine if your home is safe: have an inspector review your home, plus the adjuster! Wiring in the home can be fried, so make sure everything is A-OK! An emergency electrician can help determine if your home is safe or not.
- Check EVERYTHING! For all items that are plugged in, make sure they are fully operational. Take photos. Larry’s favorite TV had lines in the screen for the first few hours but then “worked.” Per the experts, this means the TV will slowly die over time. Documentation is beneficial so that insurance can best help you recover damaged items and not be stuck with anything broken.
- Finally, create a list, which will help you determine whether or not to file a claim. It is a balance between how much your deductible is and the replacement cost of the damaged items.
If your insurance provider is not helpful, maybe it is time to shop agencies! Remember with our Carriage Concierge, we have a list of 4 local, amazing insurance agents who provide top notch service and pricing!!
Helpful Advice
According to Google, 1 in 200 homes are hit by lightning every year! You can take steps to protect your home (but that is another blog). In the meantime, during a storm or should lightning strike your home, avoid highly conductive fixtures like toilets, faucets, sinks, and save the landline phone calls for another time. Keep your electronics in your home safe by installing surge protectors and unplugging devices during thunderstorms. This step saved our computers but not our back-up network storage. At least it saved a critical piece for us! Although you might want to keep playing on the internet until the storm has passed, you’re better off keeping all important electronics like computers, phones and other electrically based systems unplugged to avoid damage.
At the end of the day, items can be replaced. We are very blessed and grateful that no one was hurt! May your home be blessed and stay safe in the storms!