"Ideally, you should review your insurance coverage every year when you renew your policies to make sure your coverage meets your needs. But sometimes it takes storm damage to get people to take action," said Cynthia Needles Fletcher, Iowa State University Extension specialist in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies.

"If you have weather-related property damage, contact your insurance agent or company as soon as possible to report the claim," Fletcher said. "Ask what
information your agent or company will need."

The Insurance Division of the Iowa Department of Commerce offered the following recommendations.

• When contacting the insurance agent or company, take good notes. Keep track of the representative's name, and the date and time of the call.
• Document losses. Take photographs of the damaged property.
• Make temporary repairs to protect the property from further damage, but don't make permanent repairs until after talking to the insurance company's adjuster. The company may require a visual inspection before it will process the claim.
• If the claim is denied and the denial seems improper, first review the policy. Then, appeal to the insurance agent or the company's claim manager. For information about further action, contact the Iowa Insurance Division's Consumer and Legal Affairs Bureau, (515) 281-5705.

"Whether or not you had damage from this round of storms, it's a good idea to plan for future claims. You never know when the next storm will cause damage," Fletcher said. She offered these suggestions:

• Home owners and renters should review their insurance coverage every year to make sure it is adequate.
• Home owners and renters should inventory their personal property and store the information in a safe place, such as a safety deposit box at a financial institution, but not at the insured property.
• To make the inventory and other record keeping easier, order a copy of "Getting Organized: Personal and Financial Records" (Pm-1121), for $4.00 from ISU Extension Distribution Center, 119 Printing and Publications Building, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011-3171. Or purchase a copy from a county ISU Extension office.