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This guide is U.S.-focused. Confirm deadlines and eligibility for your particular disaster with the relevant agency, insurer, lender, and local utility.
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1. Make the home and household safe
Leave a structure that is unsafe, flooded, without safe electricity, or exposed to gas, fire, mold, or structural damage. Follow instructions from local emergency officials and arrange a safe place to stay if the home cannot be occupied. Do not re-enter until authorities or a qualified professional says it is safe.
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If you are displaced, establish a reliable mailing address and update the contact information on your mortgage, insurance, utility, credit-card, auto-loan, student-loan, and other accounts. Statements and legal notices may continue even when you are not living at the property.
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2. Open an insurance claim promptly
Start the claim and preserve evidence
Use the insurer’s official claims number or website. Record the claim number, the date and time of each call, the adjuster’s name, requested documents, and every promised next step. Photograph or video damage when it is safe, and keep receipts for emergency lodging, meals, cleanup, materials, and other expenses your policy may cover. Prevent further damage when reasonably possible, but do not make permanent repairs before the insurer has had an opportunity to inspect unless an emergency requires it.
Check coverage instead of assuming it
Read the declarations page and policy for covered causes, deductibles, temporary-living-expense limits, deadlines, and exclusions. A standard homeowners policy may not cover flood damage; flood coverage can be a separate policy. Wind, storm surge, flooding, sewer backup, and other causes can be treated differently under the policy and state law.
Challenge a denial or short payment in writing
Ask the insurer to explain any denial, exclusion, deductible calculation, or payment amount in writing and to identify the appeal process and deadline. Your state insurance department may be able to explain complaint or dispute procedures. Keep copies of the policy, estimates, photographs, receipts, letters, and inspection reports.
3. Apply for public disaster assistance
Check whether the area has a qualifying declaration
For a presidentially declared disaster, review the current information on DisasterAssistance.gov and the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster page. Programs, application windows, documentation requirements, and covered needs differ by disaster and location. Apply through the official channel and retain the confirmation number.
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Understand what assistance can and cannot do
Federal emergency assistance may address eligible disaster-related needs, but it is not a promise to pay for every repair or replace the full value of a home. An award can be reduced or limited when insurance or another benefit covers the same expense. Read the determination notice and appeal instructions if an application is denied or the amount does not address an eligible need.
Consider disaster loans
The U.S. Small Business Administration identifies disaster loans for eligible homeowners and renters whose primary residence was damaged in a declared disaster, subject to program requirements and rules preventing duplicate benefits. A loan is repayable and can carry interest and a defined payment schedule, so compare its long-term cost with any insurance settlement and other assistance before accepting it.
4. Call the mortgage servicer before you miss a payment
After a disaster, you still have to pay your mortgage unless your servicer agrees to a different arrangement. Call the number on your mortgage statement or the servicer’s official website as soon as you know you may not be able to pay. Explain the damage, whether you are displaced, how your income has changed, and how long you expect the hardship to last.
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- Does this loan qualify for disaster forbearance, a reduced payment, or another hardship option?
- When would the arrangement begin, how long would it last, and what must be paid during it?
- How will missed or reduced payments be repaid: a lump sum, repayment plan, deferral, or loan modification?
- Are late fees waived, and how will the arrangement be reported to the credit bureaus?
- What documents, forms, and request deadlines apply?
Options can depend on who owns or guarantees the loan as well as the servicer’s procedures. Ask for the agreement, payment schedule, and credit-reporting treatment in writing before relying on it. Forbearance is temporary payment relief, not forgiveness: the missed or reduced amounts remain owed under the repayment arrangement. Request deadlines may apply.
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Get independent mortgage help
A HUD-approved housing counselor can provide free help reviewing mortgage-relief options and preparing questions for the servicer. A counselor cannot erase the debt or guarantee a particular modification, but can help you understand whether a proposed repayment plan is affordable.
5. Triage utilities and other household bills
Utilities at an uninhabitable property
Call electric, gas, water, heating, internet, and other providers if the home is unlivable or a service is unsafe. Ask whether unused service can be suspended, whether reconnection or inspection rules apply, and whether charges continue during a suspension. Do not shut off gas or electricity yourself when doing so could create a safety hazard; follow the provider’s instructions.
Heating and cooling assistance
Contact your state, local, or tribal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program office about possible help with heating or cooling bills. Eligibility, documents, funding, and application procedures are local, so an application does not guarantee an award or immediate payment.
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Call each creditor before the due date. Describe the disaster-related hardship and ask about temporary forbearance, reduced payments, fee waivers, due-date changes, or other hardship plans. Request the terms in writing, including the length of relief, interest treatment, repayment of deferred amounts, and credit-reporting policy. Do not assume a disaster automatically pauses any account.
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- Large Size: Measuring 10" x 13.5", perfect for storing A4 / letter size important documents, passports, certificates, money, and valuables
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6. Keep a single, auditable record
Use a paper folder, digital folder, or waterproof document pouch to keep claim and assistance paperwork together. The container is optional; the record is essential. For every conversation, note the company or agency, representative, date, time, phone number, case or claim number, documents sent, exact promise, and next deadline.
Save mortgage statements, insurance policies, declarations, repair estimates, photographs, receipts, assistance applications, denial letters, and creditor agreements. Send important documents through a method that gives you proof of delivery, and keep backups somewhere separate from the damaged property.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.7. Escalate unresolved problems
Insurance disputes
Follow the insurer’s internal appeal process and then contact your state insurance department if the explanation or payment remains disputed. State procedures and filing deadlines vary.
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Mortgage-servicing problems
If the servicer does not apply an agreed arrangement, gives conflicting information, or fails to respond, keep the written record and ask for a formal review. A HUD-approved counselor can help organize the issue.
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Financial-company complaints
If a bank, lender, card issuer, or other financial company does not address a complaint, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau accepts consumer complaints. Include account numbers only through the Bureau’s secure process and attach relevant correspondence.
Watch for disaster scams
Be cautious of unsolicited demands for upfront fees, rushed repair contracts, requests for passwords, or anyone claiming to guarantee government money or mortgage forgiveness. Verify contact details through the agency, insurer, lender, or utility’s official website or statement before sharing personal information or paying.
How the main relief paths differ
| Path | Who may qualify | Type of help | Repayment or limits | What controls timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insurance claim | Policyholder with covered loss | Payment for covered damage or expenses under the policy | Deductibles, exclusions, sublimits, and proof-of-loss requirements apply | Policy notice, inspection, documentation, and state deadlines |
| Federal disaster assistance | Applicants meeting the requirements for the declared disaster | Assistance for eligible disaster-related needs | Does not guarantee full repair funding; duplicate benefits can reduce aid | Declaration, location, application window, and program rules |
| SBA disaster loan | Eligible homeowners and renters with a damaged primary residence in a declared disaster | Repayable loan | Interest and scheduled repayment apply; requirements and non-duplication rules apply | Disaster-specific application deadline and documentation |
| Mortgage forbearance or hardship plan | Borrowers whose loan and circumstances meet the servicer’s criteria | Temporary payment pause or reduction, or another negotiated option | Deferred amounts remain owed and may be due through a lump sum, plan, deferral, or modification | Loan ownership or guarantor, servicer rules, request deadline, and written agreement |
| Utility suspension or energy assistance | Customers with unused service or households meeting local energy-assistance rules | Service suspension or possible help with heating and cooling costs | Eligibility and charges during suspension vary by provider and locality | Provider procedures and local program funding |
| Creditor hardship plan | Customers whose creditor approves a disaster-related hardship request | Possible reduced payments, fee waivers, or temporary relief | Interest, deferred balance, and credit reporting depend on the written terms | Request before the due date and creditor review |
What determines which help you can receive?
- Disaster status and geography: A presidential declaration, state, county, tribal area, and local rules can change available programs.
- Property and household facts: Primary-residence status, displacement, income, household needs, and documentation affect eligibility.
- Insurance: Covered causes, deductibles, exclusions, limits, and whether another policy applies determine what remains unpaid.
- Loan structure: The mortgage investor or guarantor and the servicer’s procedures determine available payment arrangements.
- Timing: Claim-notice rules, assistance windows, creditor due dates, and appeal deadlines can be different.
A practical order for the first calls
- Confirm everyone’s safety and secure temporary shelter if necessary.
- Notify the insurer and obtain a claim number.
- Check the disaster’s official assistance information and submit eligible applications.
- Call the mortgage servicer before the next payment, then obtain any arrangement in writing.
- Ask utilities about safe suspension and contact the local energy-assistance office if relevant.
- Call credit-card, auto, student-loan, and other creditors before their due dates.
- Record every conversation, deadline, document request, decision, and denial.
Do not wait for an automatic pause that may never apply. Early, documented contact gives you the best chance to learn the available options before fees, delinquency, or an appeal deadline complicates the situation.
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