Eaton Fire Disaster Area

[szie21707]

I was not directly affected by the Eaton Fire.  I live in Los Angeles County which was Declared a Disaster Area.  Because of imminent danger of fires happening, my power was and is still shut off (3 weeks now).  I had food spoil which created a loss.  Does food qualify as part of Casualty Loss on my taxes?  How can I find out if I qualify to claim this deduction on my Schedule A?  NOTE: I do not have home insurance.

[ThomasM125 · Accepted solution]

If you live in a federally declared disaster area, you can claim a casualty loss on household items without itemizing your deductions to the extent the loss is over $500. Food would qualify as a household item, however your deduction is based on the fair market value of your food, not what you paid for it. Since food you purchased would not normally have a high re-sale value and it would be difficult to document it's fair market value, if you did take a deduction it may not sustain an audit.