The Sworn Proof Of Loss
A sworn statement, under oath, with a hard deadline. Get it wrong and you can lose a valid claim on a technicality - which is precisely why carriers send them.
At some point in a contested claim, a form arrives titled Sworn Statement in Proof of Loss, with a letter giving you sixty days - sometimes thirty - to return it completed, signed and notarized.
It is easy to mistake for administration. It is not. It is a condition of the policy, it is sworn under oath, and the deadline is real.
What it is
A formal statement of your claim: the policy and claim numbers, the date and cause of loss, your interest in the property, other insurance, encumbrances, the amount you claim, and your signature in front of a notary.
It moves the claim out of conversation and onto the record. That is why carriers request them at exactly two moments: when a file is genuinely complex, and when a file has become contested and they would like the claim pinned to a number.
Why it matters more than it looks
It is sworn. You are attesting under oath. An inflated or careless figure is not a negotiating position, it is a sworn misstatement, and carriers have voided claims over it.
It sets a ceiling. In practice the amount you state becomes the number you are claiming. State it too low because the scope is not finished, and you have anchored your own claim beneath the loss.
The deadline is a policy condition. Miss it and the carrier can argue you failed to comply with the policy, which is a way to lose a valid claim without ever arguing about the damage.
How to complete one properly
1. Do not rush it, and do not ignore it. If the scope is not finished, ask for an extension in writing before the deadline expires - carriers grant them regularly, and a written extension is a document. An extension requested after the deadline is a favor, not a right.
2. State an amount you can support today, and where a category is genuinely unresolved, say so on the face of the form: the amount is not yet fully ascertained, investigation continues, and the statement will be amended as further information becomes available. Reserve the right to amend explicitly.
3. Attach the supporting scope. A line-item estimate, photographs, invoices, receipts, and the code citations behind any ordinance-or-law figure. A number with a scope behind it is a claim; a number on its own is a guess under oath.
4. Get the details exactly right. Policy number, claim number, date of loss, legal name of the insured, mortgagee, other insurance. Errors here get used.
5. Notarize it properly and keep a complete copy of everything you sent, plus proof of delivery and the date.
6. Do not leave blanks. Write "none" or "not applicable" rather than leaving a box empty.
The questions to answer before you sign
- Is the scope complete, or are concealed conditions still being discovered?
- Have code upgrades been quantified, and does the policy carry ordinance or law coverage?
- Are contents, additional living expenses, business income and loss of rents included where they apply?
- Is the figure replacement cost or actual cash value, and does the form ask for one specifically?
- Has the deductible been handled correctly?
- Is anything in here something you would be uncomfortable repeating under oath?
The related one: the examination under oath
Some policies also allow the carrier to require an examination under oath - a recorded, transcribed, question-and-answer session with counsel present. It is a condition of the policy, so refusing is not free.
If you receive one of these, speak to an attorney before you attend. That is not a step to take alone, and it is one of the clearer points at which a claim has stopped being a claim and started being a legal matter.
In short
A proof of loss is not paperwork, and it is not the moment to be casual. Get the scope right first, request more time in writing if you need it, attach the evidence, and sign a number you can stand behind.
If one has landed on your desk and the scope is not finished, send it to us with the deadline - this is exactly the point where a claim is most easily lost on a technicality, and it is one of the most common reasons people call us.
Keep reading
ACV, RCV And Recoverable Depreciation
Why the first check is smaller than the estimate, what the missing money is called, and exactly how to get it released. This is the most expensive thing property owners do not know.
Claim ProcessHow To Document Property Damage Properly
Your photographs are the claim. Here is the method we use on commercial files, cut down to what a property owner can do in an afternoon with a phone.
Claim ProcessHow Your Deductible Actually Works
Flat deductibles, percentage wind-and-hail deductibles, per-occurrence versus per-building, and why "we will cover your deductible" is an offer to commit a crime with you.