I need home insurance now! Homeowner’s insurance coverage provides financial protection against loss due to accidents, disasters, and theft. Most standard policies include four crucial types of coverage: Coverage for the structure of your home, coverage for your personal belongings, liability protection, and coverage for additional living expenses.
Not only does homeowners insurance protect your home and personal possessions from theft, the weather, fire, and accidents, it is also a requirement to get a mortgage. Homeowners insurance protects more than just the structure of your home and the items inside.
Perils
An accidental fire would be an example of a peril. If a fire in your kitchen were to destroy basically your entire kitchen, your stove, cabinets, floor, your claim would be covered. Fire is named as the peril in the policy, and the claim would be covered.
Here are some perils that would be covered under most insurance policies.
• Aircraft
• Explosion
• Falling objects
• Fire or lightning
• Hail or windstorm
• Riot
• Smoke
• Theft
• Vehicles
Coverage for the structure of the home
The homeowner’s policy pays to rebuild or repair your home if damaged or destroyed by lightning, hail, hurricane, fire, or other disasters as listed in the policy. Most policies will cover detached structures such as a tool shed, garage, or gazebo, typically for about 10% of the amount of insurance on the house’s structure. I need home insurance now!
A standard policy will not pay for damage caused by an earthquake, flood, or routine wear and tear of the house. When purchasing coverage for the structure of the home, remember to purchase enough coverage to rebuild your home.
Coverage for your personal belongings
Your personal items such as clothing, furniture, sports gear, and other personal belongings are covered if destroyed by a hurricane, fire, or other insured causes or if they are stolen. The coverage is typically 50 to 70% of the insurance you have on the structure of the home. The best way to ensure there is enough coverage is to conduct a home inventory.
Personal items stored off-premises are also covered. This means you have coverage anywhere in the world. Some companies limit the amount to 10% of the amount of coverage you have for your personal belongings. You also have up to $500 of coverage for the unauthorized use of your credit cards.
Expensive items like jewelry, collectibles, art, furs, and silverware are covered, but there generally are dollar limits if they are stolen. Insure these items for their full value by purchasing a special floater or personal property endorsement. Get an official appraisal before insuring them.
Trees, shrubs, and plants are covered for about $500 per item under standard homeowners insurance. They are not covered if they have been poorly maintained or are diseased.
Liability protection
Liability coverage protects against lawsuits for bodily injury or damage to property that you, your family members, or pets cause to others. If one of your children or your dog accidentally damages a neighbor’s costly rug, you are covered. But if your rug is destroyed, you get nothing.
The liability part of the policy pays the cost of defending you during court proceedings and any amounts awarded by the judge, up the limit outlined in your insurance policy. Liability limits begin at $100,000. It is a good idea to discuss with your insurance professional if you should purchase additional protection. I need home insurance now! If you have significant assets and feel you need more protection than what is available under your homeowner’s policy, consider an umbrella or excess liability policy. An umbrella policy provides higher liability limits and broader coverage than a standard policy.
Your policy also offers no-fault medical coverage. If a friend or neighbor is injured in your home, they can submit medical bills directly to your insurance company. This way, the bills can be paid without lawyer intervention or liability claim filed against you. This will not cover medical bills for your own family or pet.
(ALE) Additional living expenses
This coverage pays the additional costs of living away from home if you cannot live there because it is uninhabitable. It will cover restaurant meals, hotel bills, and other costs over and above your usual living expenses while your home is being rebuilt.
Bear in mind that the ALE coverage has limits, and some policies include a time limit. However, these limits are separate from the amount available to repair or rebuild your home. If you exhaust the entire ALE, your insurance company will pay the total cost of rebuilding your home up to the stated limit in your policy. I need home insurance now!
If you rent out part of your home, ALE will cover the rent you would have received from the tenant had your home not been destroyed.
Hail damage
Hailstones have a diameter typically of about ¼ ” and weigh a few ounces. Occasionally, they reach the ground as large as six inches in diameter, weighing over one pound. They do not need to get to these extremes of weight and size to cause severe damage to your home and roof. I need home insurance now!
While hail damage can be extensive and the cost to repair shocking, in most cases, it will be covered under a standard homeowner’s insurance policy.
Are you wondering how much home insurance pays for hail damage repair? Hail damage is one of the most common claims made on homeowners insurance, accounting for almost 70% of insured property losses. In 2018, the losses reached $10 billion. Fortunately, most policies cover structural damage resulting from hail. Storm damage roof repair, garage, windows, appliances, deck, or porch damage will be covered for repairs, depending on the limits and deductibles you chose at the time of purchase of the policy. I need home insurance now!
Roof repair
When severe weather hits, homeowners can face an urgent situation if their property has sustained damage. In most cases, the potential fallout from bad weather is only the beginning. While the storm itself causes damage to the home, damage can create an entry point for more damage, which means more costs, safety hazards, and challenges.
It is essential to repair the roof of a home quickly after storm damage. As it provides a protective shield over the house, even small amounts of roof damage can become a severe issue if ignored. I need home insurance now! Seek out a professional storm damage service to get it repaired as soon as possible. This is especially important if you have a leaking roof.
Cracks and leaks can develop in the roof from bad weather, but the damage isn’t always apparent. The typical way these leaks are identified is by staining on the ceiling or walls inside of the home. Severe weather can cause or make the leaks worse, forcing water into your home, causing extensive damage. If you notice this type of staining, contact a roof damage repair service immediately. I need home insurance now!
Most roof damage cannot be repaired by a homeowner. If a severe storm is the cause of that damage, your company may pay to fully or partially cover the cost of the damage. Have your roof repaired by a storm damage service and pass the cost on to the insurance company. It is essential to file a claim so the insurance adjuster can assess the damage.
The adjuster can identify the damage, the cause and make a determination on whether the roof replacement or repair is covered under your policy. I need home insurance now! High winds, tornadoes, thunderstorms, and hail are some of the types of serious weather conditions that can damage the roof of your home and require fast repair. The longer you wait to repair it, the more it will cost.
Mold removal
Mold removal is covered when the mold source is from something already covered in your homeowner’s insurance policy, such as water damage. A standard homeowner’s policy will protect you from damage resulting from sudden and accidental incidents such as an overflow from a malfunctioning water heater or a broken pipe.
Contact mold removal contractors to remove it, then file a claim for that and repair any property permanently damaged by the mold as outlined in the policy caused by water damage.
Fire damage
I need home insurance now! Fires that damage but do not entirely destroy the home create unusual issues when filing an insurance claim. These claims are called “partial losses” because the home has only been partially destroyed. Things to look for with a partial loss include any hidden damage resulting in water, ash, mold, smoke, air quality issues, or a damaged cable seal. If you retain a smoke damage cleanup firm, have them bill the insurance company. Document everything that was destroyed or damaged.
Most home insurance policies will cover garage door replacement resulting from theft, vandalism, fire, and damage. The insurance policy will cover replacement. It will not cover intentional damage to the door and certain natural disasters. Contact a residential garage door repair service and have them bill the insurance company if your door has been damaged after a consequence covered by your policy. I need home insurance now!
Types of homeowners insurance policies
Different types of homeowners policies are standard throughout the United States. However, individual insurers and individual states might offer policies that are different or go by other names such as “deluxe” or “standard.” One exception to this is the state of Texas, where policies are different from other states.
Individuals who own the home they live in have several different policies to choose from. The most common and popular policy is the HO-3, which provides coverage for the structure of the home and personal property and personal liability coverage. It will also provide the broadest coverage.
What is not covered by homeowner’s insurance
Typical homeowner’s insurance policies offer coverage for damage caused by hail, windstorms, lightning strikes, or fire. But not all disasters are covered by homeowner’s insurance. For example, damage caused by floods and earthquakes is not covered by the policy. I need home insurance now!
Earthquake insurance covers some of the damage and losses that earthquakes cause to your home, personal possessions, and buildings on your property. Your homeowner’s insurance policy does not cover earthquake damage, except for fire resulting from it.
The average deductible for earthquake insurance is generally quite high, often between 15 and 20% of your total coverage limit for damage to your home.
Flood insurance protects a structure and its contents from water damage due to a flood. A flood is defined as a temporary condition where two or more acres of typically dry land are inundated with water or mudflow.
Coverage from the National Flood Insurance Program cannot exceed $250,000 for your home’s structure and $100,000 for personal property. If you purchase insurance coverage from private flood insurers, you are able to get much higher limits.
According to the NFIP, the following are not covered by flood insurance: damage caused by moisture, mold, mildew that could have been avoided by the homeowner and cannot be attributed to the flood. I need home insurance now!
A lender will not give you a mortgage without proof of homeowner’s insurance coverage. Make sure you secure a policy between the time your offer is accepted and the date you close on the home. Inadequate insurance coverage or no insurance coverage can delay your closing until the lender is satisfied.
This is because the mortgage company needs to be protected in case of a catastrophic event that could totally damage the home. They want their interest in the property protected and will not provide a mortgage until they are satisfied that is the case.
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.