Many contracts include a sentence that limits the owner to the remedies written in that contract. It may be worded as the only remedy, the sole remedy, or the exclusive remedy. The sentence shapes what you may do if the contract does not pay a claim the way you expected. It is worth asking about before you sign, not after a denial.
Find the sentence
Search the blank contract for the words only, sole, exclusive, and remedy, and read the paragraph around each match. Note whether the sentence limits payment, the owner's rights to other compensation, or both. Copy the sentence exactly as written.
Questions to ask the seller in writing
Ask what the clause means in plain words. Ask whether it affects a claim that is denied, a claim that is paid late, or a claim that is paid for less than the repair cost. Ask what written reason the seller gives when a claim is denied, and whether the owner may challenge that reason and to whom. Ask which regulator or program the contract is filed under, and whether that body handles complaints about contracts of this kind.
Compare the answers across offers
Put the sentence from each offer side by side. Clauses worded alike can still leave different room for the owner, depending on the definitions and the claims process in each contract. Keep the answers, the blank contracts, and any written reasons together.
When a lawyer or the regulator should answer
This guide is not legal advice and does not say how the clause would be read in a dispute. A licensed attorney in your state can explain how the clause applies to your situation. The regulator named on the state page can explain what it handles and how a complaint is filed.
What this guide does not do
It does not say what any company's clause says. The state pages on this site print the governing statute or program and, where a roster is published, the roster entry for that state. Where this edition has not read a state's roster, the state page says so.