On this website and through our Roadmap to Recovery program you will find tips, tools and resources relevant to the Thomas fire.  Our main focus is on helping you navigate your insurance claim toward a full, fair and prompt settlement.  We also offer guidance on debris removal, temporary living arrangements, government aid, construction issues, hiring professional help, and deciding how and if you will repair, rebuild or buy a replacement home.

If your home has been damaged or destroyed, we are very sorry.  Please watch the First Steps After a Disaster video and make use of all the help our non-profit offers.  That includes videos of our past Roadmap to Recovery workshops in other wildfire areas, a library of tips, samples and tools, guidance from past disaster survivors, and answers to individual questions from insurance claim and legal profession expert volunteers via our Ask an Expert forum.

If your home was spared but was exposed to extreme heat and smoke, we offer specialized guidance on insurance claim issues related to proper cleaning, inspecting for damage, restoring healthy indoor air quality and repairing obvious as well as hidden damage.

SPECIAL NOTICE:

INSURANCE COMMISSIONER JONES ISSUES BULLETIN URGING HOMEOWNERS TO FILE MUDSLIDE, MUDFLOW, AND DEBRIS FLOW CLAIMS BASED ON PRELIMINARY INDICATIONS THAT FIRE WAS THE EFFICIENT PROXIMATE CAUSE. A SUBSEQUENT PRESS RELEASE INDICATES MOST INSURERS ARE RECOGNIZING EFFICIENT PROXIMATE CAUSE AND PAYING CLAIMS.

Here are some items to get you started putting one foot in front of the other on the road to recovery:

• Top Ten Insurance Claim Tips
• FAQs about Home Insurance Claims in California
• Insurance claim rules in California – English (Spanish)
• Survivors’ Speak (tips written by previous catastrophe survivors)
• Tips and Sample Letter Asking for ALE/Loss of Use Benefits to be Extended
• Sample Letter Requesting A Complete Copy of Your Home Insurance Policy
• Simplified Guide to Your Declarations Page
• ALE/Loss of Use: What expenses can you claim on your homeowner’s policy?
• Sample Letter Requesting Information About Insurance Benefits for Temporary Living Expenses (“ALE” or “Loss of Use”)
• Contents Claim Help and Home Inventory Strategies
• Speak UP: Tips for Communicating with your Insurance Company
• Buy or rebuild?
• Underinsurance 101
• Pro bono legal help resources
• Post-wildfire mudflow damage
• Insurance Commissioner: wildfire-related laws
• Tax tips for disaster survivors
• Mobile home claim tips
• Helping Handbook – English
• Helping Handbook – Spanish

For more information, visit our Claim Help Library by clicking the icon below:

Wildfire (Total Loss) Claim Help Library		Partial Loss Claim Help Library

Ask an Expert Forum:

The UP ”Ask an Expert” forum is an easy and safe way to ask direct questions and get answers from experienced and reputable consumer-oriented attorneys, claim, construction, tax and finance professionals plus previous disaster survivors who serve as UP volunteers. Your identity and personal information are protected. To use the forum, please visit the “Ask an Expert” page here.