Rodents can be a home owner’s worst nightmare. They are hard to find, hard to catch, and hard to eradicate completely. And the whole time they are inside your home, they do damage. They can’t help gnawing on anything in sight, and of course they urinate and defecate anywhere they please. The only thing worse than having rodents in your home is having more rodents in your home.
So, what are you to do? Get them out, obviously, and fix up your house. But will insurance help you cover the cost to hire a pest control professional to come and remove the rodents? Unfortunately, the answer is probably not. Unless you have a highly specific floater for pest removal on top of your general homeowner’s insurance policy, then you have to foot the bill. Don’t let this discourage you from calling a professional, though; you can’t risk the pests being inside your house unchecked any longer. The longer they are inside, the damage will only continue to escalate, costing you much more money in the long run.
What about Home Repair Costs?
So you’ve hired a pro who removed the critters from your home. Now what? There’s bound to be at least some damage you need to fix. Will homeowner’s insurance cover those repairs? Sadly, the answer is no again. Some policies cover a basic list of named perils, none of which are damage caused by rodents. More comprehensive policies cover everything not expressly excluded, and most of the time rodents and vermin are named and excluded. If the rodent damage is so severe that it causes a covered peril like a fire from chewed electrical wires, then you have a good chance of being covered. Speak with your insurance provider to understand what is covered and what isn’t, and if there’s any chance of adding a rodent protection policy.
Call the Removal and Repair Experts
At Critter Control® of Tampa, we have been in the business of removing rodents and repairing damaged homes for decades now. Talk with us about your specific situation and we can give you recommendations on how to handle insurance claims. If you are covered, our technicians will help prepare thorough documentation for your insurer. But first and foremost, let us get the rodents out, clean up the mess, and repair your home. Call us today for a free initial inspection at 813-948-0870.
