By Julie Trescott
 town crier file photos A natural gas explosion leveled this Los Altos home July 7. Experts advise that people leave such a scene immediately, not even risking a phone call. |
When a natural gas explosion destroyed a Los Altos home recently, the family was displaced and forced to rebuild their lives.
While it’s hard to imagine saying goodbye to a home and personal belongings, insurance companies can ease the daunting task of starting over from scratch.
“There’s nothing you can do once it’s done,” said State Farm agent Dwight Matthews of Los Altos. “The most important thing to do is let it go and let your agent and claims department help you through the process.”
In the event of an emergency such as that which befell the David Hu family July 7, an insurance agent immediately gets involved, getting the policyholders situated in a hotel and offering a check for up to $5,000 on the spot to pay for clothes, food and other living expenses.
After the family is established in a temporary home, the insurance companies help the policyholders figure out how they want to handle the claim. Agents can help find and hire contractors and get construction under way as soon as possible.
During this time, the claims department typically pays for additional living expenses up to 12 months, including the cost of an apartment and rental furniture.
“We pay for them to live according to the way they’re living right now,” Matthews said.
Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of the 8:15 a.m. blast that blew the roof off its frame and leveled three-quarters of the single-story ranch home on Frontero Avenue.
Hu was treated for minor injuries. The two children escaped unharmed. His wife was out of town.
The length of the rebuilding process varies according to the severity of the accident. Though it generally averages from six months to one year, a near-destruction like the Hus experienced may take longer.
Insurance companies also help determine which personal effects can be salvaged and which need to be cleaned or replaced.
The Hus lost more personal belongings than the typical disaster victims. Allstate agent Gary Hellman of Los Altos explained that he generally sees kitchen fires or broken water heaters, accidents that result in only a few damaged rooms.
The house explosion was “more dramatic than the typical loss,” Hellman said. “Most claims are not total losses like that.”
The victims usually make a list of what they’ve lost, and those belongings will eventually be replaced at full value. Policyholders receive whatever the dwelling is insured for, plus up to an additional 75 percent of the building value to cover destroyed items.
Hellman suggested that homeowners make a personal inventory list, complete with the locations of important documents like birth certificates and passports, and store it in a safety deposit box.
Some customers take videos of every room in their house.
This simple process makes it easier to recover or replace personal items in the event of an emergency.
In the end, a victim’s only expense is a single deductible, which can be as low as $1,000 depending on the policyholder’s insurance plan.
Claims may take longer if more families are affected. During large-scale catastrophes such as hurricanes and earthquakes, insurance companies bring teams of people from all over the
country and set up field claims offices to help people in a timely manne
