Fact Sheet
FEMA
Determination Letter not Always Final Word
If
you’re a survivor of the West Virginia severe storms, flooding, landslides and
mudslides of July 28-29, 2017 and get a letter that says your application for
federal assistance is “ineligible” or “incomplete,” be sure to read the letter all
the way through to the end to find out why.
All applicants have the right to appeal and many times a
quick fix will change the determination.
Reasons for receiving an ineligible determination:
- Most common
reason for ineligibility: you didn’t provide FEMA with a copy of a letter verifying
your insurance coverage and detailing your settlement. FEMA needs this to
process your grant application.
- Your insurance company will be able to provide you
the documents.
- Other reasons for ineligibility may include:
- You did not sign the required documents.
- You did not prove occupancy or ownership.
- Your identity may not have been verified.
- The damage is not to your primary residence, but to
a secondary home or a rental property.
- Another member of your household may have applied
and received assistance.
- Your disaster-related losses could not be verified.
What you should do next:
- You may take copies of the documents to your closest
Disaster Recovery Center where a FEMA specialist can help you.
- Find DRC locations by going online at fema.gov/disaster-recovery-centers or by downloading and using the FEMA app. You may
also call the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362.
If you use TTY, call 800-462-7585. If
you use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS), call 800-621-3362.
- Or mail copies of the needed documents within 60
days of receiving your letter to the address below.
FEMA – Individuals & Households Program
National Processing Service Center
P.O. Box 10055
Hyattsville, MD 20782-7055
- You can also fax the documents to:
800-827-8112
Attention: FEMA – Individuals & Households Program
- It’s important to write the registration number FEMA
gave you after applying for help on all documents; include the federal
disaster declaration number, DR-4331-WV.
If you have more questions:
Call the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362. If you use
TTY, call 800-462-7585. If you use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS), call
800-621-3362.
Visit a DRC to speak with a FEMA specialist
who can help you appeal.
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Disaster recovery
assistance is available without
regard to race, color,
religion, nationality, sex, age, disability, English proficiency or economic status. If you or someone you
know has been discriminated against, call FEMA
toll-free at 800-621-FEMA (3362).
For TTY call 800-462-7585.
FEMA’s mission
is to support our citizens and first responders
to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our
capability to prepare for, protect against, respond
to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards. Follow us
on Twitter at https://twitter.com/femaregion3 and the FEMA Blog at http://blog.fema.gov.
The U.S. Small Business Administration
(SBA) is the federal government’s primary source of
money for the long-term rebuilding
of disaster-damaged private property. SBA helps homeowners,
renters, businesses of all sizes, and private non-profit organizations fund repairs or rebuilding efforts and cover the cost
of replacing lost or disaster-damaged personal property. These disaster loans cover losses not fully compensated by insurance or other recoveries
and do not duplicate benefits of other agencies or organizations. For more
information, applicants may contact SBA’s Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center by calling (800) 659-2955, emailing disastercustomerservice@sba.gov, or visiting SBA’s Web
site at www.sba.gov/disaster. Deaf and hard-of-hearing
individuals may call (800) 877-8339.