Food spoiled? Homeowners insurance may cover your loss after Hurricane Irma | Doreen’s Deals

Sept. 18--If you lost power during Hurricane Irma (who didn't?) and all your food spoiled, your homeowners insurance may cover the cost to replace it up to $500.

Food becomes unsafe to eat after just a few hours, according to the Department of Agriculture's food safety rules. If food in your refrigerator or freezer remained above 40 degrees for more than 2 hours, it's got to go.

When it comes spoiled food, the rule is this: When in doubt, toss it out. Experts say you can't rely on appearance and odor. Don't risk getting food poisoning to save a buck.

But you may be able to get reimbursed for the loss. I had to toss everything -- except one bottle of mustard (it never goes bad) -- after losing power and now I need to restock the larder.

It hurt to toss all that food, but on the bright side, I now have a sparking clean refrigerator and freezer. Spoiled food is typically covered under your homeowners insurance policy under perils, which include windstorms, according to the Insurance Information Institute (III.org). However, you must pay a deductible before you can get reimbursed. We will receive $500 for the food, which was the coverage limit. If you're not sure if the loss is covered, check your policy or ask your agent.

For more helpful information on filing an insurance claim, read how make your Hurricane Irma insurance claim go smoothly as possible by my colleague Ron Hurtibise, our insurance expert.

By the way, before the storm hit, I was away from home on assignment for the newspaper, so I planned ahead by using the penny trick to let me know if our freezer had thawed while I was away.

Here's how it works: Fill a see-through plastic cup with water. Freeze it and then place a penny atop the ice and leave the glass inside the freezer. If the power goes out and the ice melts, the penny will drop to the bottom of the glass. That's the signal that refrigerated and frozen goods are spoiled. My son hooked up our generator up and the thawed water in the cup refroze, but that penny in the bottom of the glass and I new our food was unsafe to consume.

Now, go forth, clip those coupons and buy those BOGOs to restock.

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