If you are using TurboTax Online, you will need to be in the screen where you can see Federal tab on the left side. To get there, just click on Tax Home> Take me to my return. Once you are there, please follow the below
- Go to Deductions and Credits on TurboTax. If you choose to go with the step-by-step instruction, click on Guide me at the All tax breaks section. If you choose to go directly to the page and enter your loss, please follow the below steps.
- Select Other Deductions and Credits at the bottom of the page
- Select Casualties and Thefts
- Answer the questions and you will be able to claim any losses you incurred.
You can deduct losses of items such as food in freezers and damage caused due to the hurricane. These can be claimed on Schedule A Itemized Deductions. TurboTax will calculate any disaster losses you may have due to the electricity being cut off for an extended period.
To qualify, a loss must be attributable to a federally declared disaster and occur in an area determined by the President to warrant assistance by the federal government under the Stafford Act, such as Hurricane Irma. The deduction is limited to the “net disaster loss”which consists of the excess of personal casualty losses attributable to a federally declared disaster over personal casualty gains. TurboTax will figure what is allowable based on how you answers the questions in the program.
