Attorney: Document Ida repairs before Francine hits

Francine is expected to hit the Louisiana coast on Wednesday afternoon, and if your home had storm damage from Hurricane Ida, you'll want to get videos and photos of the repairs you made after that storm before the new hurricane hits.

"Demonstrate any areas that you repaired to show that it was actually repaired after Hurricane Ida," Doug Sunseri, host of ALL THINGS LEGAL on WWL said. "It's very important that if you've done the repairs to video (them)."

According to Sunseri, if you filed a storm damage claim after Hurricane Francine and you filed a claim following Ida, insurance companies will want proof that you actually made repairs to your home post-Ida.

"The initial kneejerk reaction of any insurance claim for Hurricane Francine will be: we paid you for those damages for Hurricane Ida, and you've not completed those repairs, so we're not going to pay you twice," Sunseri said. "The insurance companies will deny your claim if they see that the damage to your residence is the same damage that was claimed in Hurricane Ida or in the same area."

Sunseri also advises homeowners who paid for Ida repairs to find the receipts from their contractors and keep them in a safe place just in case the insurance company wants to see proof of repairs.

"Keep those records that you have paying contractors to demonstrate that those areas have been repaired," Sunseri said. "I would go through your entire house to demonstrate the areas that were damaged in Hurricane Ida which have been remediated or addressed. Have a film of it so when that issue is raised if you file an insurance claim, you'll have sufficient evidence to take that issue off the table."

In addition, Sunseri urges homeowners who were impacted by Ida to get video and photos of the items in your house so you can prove to the insurance company what you had before the storm and the condition those items were in just in case you need to file a claim for storm damages.