Check your policy's declaration page for the specific additional living expense coverage limit. The amount is based on the policy's dwelling coverage limit. Twenty to thirty percent of the dwelling limit is common.

You are eligible to make an ALE claim when a covered loss makes your home uninhabitable. ALE is restricted to expenditures above your normal living costs. This may include temporary housing fees, increased travel expense if relocation means driving further to work, payment to connect utilities to the temporary home, storage charges and more. ALE pays only the extra expense you incur while your home is being repaired.

Documentation is essential to settling an additional living expense claim. Note each expenditure and save receipts. Be prepared to provide proof of normal expenses to justify your ALE claim.

Additional living expense coverage ends when 1) expenditures exceed the ALE coverage limit; 2) your damaged house is repaired; or 3) a time limit established by the insurance company (often twelve months after the covered loss).