---
id: KB-IC-016
url: https://app.codecontract.io/help/reports-and-quality/the-report-an-insurer-asks-for
idioma: en
categoria: informes-y-calidad
subcategoria: informes
audiencia: usuario
nivel: intermedio
actualizado: 2026-08-13
tambienEn: [es]
relacionados: [KB-IC-003, KB-LE-007]
citadoPor: [KB-IC-008]
---

# The report an insurer asks for

_After an incident, what decides the payout is not what happened: it is what you can show from before._

**Responde a:** documentation for an insurance claim · the loss adjuster asks for documents · insurance claim required documentation · what to keep in case of an incident

When an incident happens — damage, an accident, a theft, a serious breakdown — the conversation with the insurer is not about the event: it is about whether the conditions you signed up to were being met. And that is proven with documentation from before the event, which is exactly what nobody prepares with this in mind.

## What a loss adjuster asks for, in order

| What they ask for | What they are checking | From when it must date |
| --- | --- | --- |
| The policy and its endorsements | What was covered that day | In force on the date of the event |
| Maintenance and inspections | That the policy's obligations were being met | From before, with their dates |
| Documentation of third parties involved | Whether subcontractors were there and with what cover | From before |
| What happened | The event itself | From the moment: reports, photos, notifications |

> [!IMPORTANT]
> The first three rows are from **before** the incident and they are what decides. A serviced extinguisher, a certified installation or a subcontractor with current insurance cannot be evidenced afterwards: either the dated paper existed or it does not. The fourth row — what happened — is what everyone gathers and what nobody much disputes.

## What to do in the first hours

1. **Record the event with its time, even with gaps** — A report written the same day is worth far more than a complete one three days later.
2. **Photograph before touching anything** — Once cleaning or repair starts, the scene stops being reconstructable.
3. **Notify within the policy's deadline** — And keep proof of that notification, not just make it.
4. **And gather the before-material while you still remember where it is** — Inspections and the contracts of whoever was involved.

> [!WARNING]
> Point three is where most claims get complicated, and not on the merits: many policies set a short window to report an incident, and reporting through a channel that leaves no trace amounts to arguing later about whether you did. A notification with delivery evidence the same day closes that door for good.

## What to have in place before you need it

**En corto**

- Mandatory inspections with warnings, which are exactly the ones that lapse unnoticed.
- Each subcontractor's insurance, current and checked, not filed.
- Condition photos of what is delivered or received.
- And the policy where someone can find it at nine at night.

That last looks minor and is not: incidents rarely happen in office hours, and the first half hour goes on finding what is covered and who to call.

> [!NOTE]
> Reporting deadlines, what each policy covers and what documentation it requires vary by contract and by line of business. **Confirm that with your broker or in the policy itself**; what is described here is what to keep findable so that conversation is short.

**What if the maintenance was done but not recorded?**

You try to evidence it with whatever exists — invoices, technician reports — but it weighs far less.

**Is a phone photo enough?**

Yes, and better with a provable date if the amount is significant.

**Should the adjuster be given access?**

Handing over what they ask for is usually enough; if they will review a lot, read-only access is easier for both.

## Ejemplos

**A company has a warehouse fire and the adjuster asks for fire system inspections.**

- Hands over the dated inspections and the current insurance of the subcontractor working there

→ The claim proceeds on the facts, with no argument about whether conditions were met.

**After a claim, the insurer asks you to evidence three years of document control.**

- Checks the period's history with its dates
- Provides the record of checks performed, not a description
- Records what was handed over and when

→ The claim rests on a verifiable trail rather than on a statement.

**The insurer is answered with a description of the procedure.**

- Shows the log of real operations

→ The control moves from assertion to evidence.

**The record for exactly the period of interest is missing.**

- Documents the search and its outcome

→ A proven absence is worth more than silence.

**The insurer asks for something inside documents containing third-party data.**

- Shares the control evidence instead

→ You demonstrate without exposing anyone.

**The policy covered less than was assumed.**

- Checks what was contracted before claiming

→ Expectations are set before the conversation.

**The claim goes in late because documentation had to be hunted.**

- Keeps the file current through the year

→ The claim goes in within time.

**Each department sends its part to the insurer separately.**

- Centralises the response in one file

→ The insurer receives a coherent set.