When a hurricane is only days away, hardware stores empty, generators disappear, and everyone rushes to prepare. Unfortunately, the best time to protect your home is long before a storm ever appears on the forecast.

Start outside your home. Walk your property and secure or store anything that could become airborne during high winds, including patio furniture, grills, potted plants, decorations, and loose fencing.

Next, inspect your roof. Missing shingles, loose flashing, damaged soffits, and clogged gutters may seem like small maintenance issues, but they are often where wind-driven rain first enters a home during a hurricane.

Trim trees and remove dead branches that could fall onto your roof, vehicles, or power lines. Keeping healthy limbs away from your home also reduces the risk of damage during strong winds.

Inside your home, create a digital inventory of your belongings. Walk through every room with your phone, recording furniture, electronics, appliances, artwork, cabinets, and valuables. Store the videos in cloud storage so they’ll still be available even if your phone is damaged or lost.

Just as important, take a few minutes to review your homeowners insurance policy. Many Florida homeowners don’t discover their deductibles, coverage limits, or exclusions until after a claim has already been filed.

What to Do Immediately After the Storm

If your home suffers storm damage, safety always comes first. Once conditions are safe, photograph all damage before beginning cleanup whenever possible.

Make temporary repairs—such as placing a tarp over a damaged roof—to prevent additional damage, but save every receipt and document each step with photographs.

At Homeowner Claims Help (HCH), we’ve seen firsthand how good preparation can make the insurance claims process faster, easier, and more successful. The homeowners who document their property before a storm often have a significant advantage when it’s time to file a claim.

Hurricanes can’t be prevented, but many of the problems that follow them can. Preparing before hurricane season helps protect your family, your property, and your financial recovery.

Need Guidance After Storm Damage?

Homeowner Claims Help (HCH) provides free property inspections and insurance policy reviews for Florida homeowners. If you have questions about your claim, we’re ready to help.