Learn what standard homeowners insurance policies generally include 

Your house is more than simply a place to sleep. It might be your most precious asset and one that you won’t be able to replace on your own if calamity strikes. That’s why getting proper home insurance coverage for your house is crucial.

What Does Homeowners Insurance Cover?

Standard homeowners insurance policies generally include six types of coverage. Here’s a quick rundown of what they are:

Dwelling coverage

Dwelling coverage protects your home’s structure, which includes the walls, floors, windows, and roof. Built-in appliances, such as furnaces, are also often covered by your home insurance. If your house has an attached garage, porch, or deck, these are also covered by your dwelling policy. According to the Insurance Information Institute, some of the most common causes of homeowners insurance claims include wind, hail, ice, fire, and lightning.

Other structures coverage

Other structures coverage protects any structures on your property that aren’t related to your home (i.e. a shed, fence, or detached garage.)

Personal property coverage

“Personal property” refers to your personal possessions, such as clothes, furniture, appliances, and electronics. Most homeowner’s insurance plans cover these valuables everywhere around the globe, not just within your home. For example, if someone takes your laptop while staying at a hotel in Italy, it will most likely be insured (minus your deductible). These disasters are typically called “perils” in your policy.

Loss of use coverage

the loss of use section, sometimes called “additional living expenses,” of your homeowner’s policy can come in handy if your home is too damaged to live in. If your house becomes uninhabitable as a result of a disaster covered by your policy, loss of use coverage may pay for hotel stays, restaurant meals, or other expenditures connected with living someplace else.

Liability coverage

Personal liability insurance protects you financially if someone sues you for harming them or causing damage to their property. Coverage usually applies to everybody in your family, including pets.

Medical payments coverage

Medical payments coverage, like liability coverage, compensates if you cause bodily harm to someone outside your home. However, no litigation is necessary, and you do not have to be proven at fault for medical payments coverage to payout.

What’s Not Covered by Homeowners Insurance

Even the most comprehensive homeowners insurance coverage will not cover everything that may go awry with your home. You can’t intentionally damage your own house and then expect your insurer to pay for it.

Policies also typically exclude damage from other causes in which you can buy separate coverage for some of these risks:

• Flooding, including drain and sewer backup.
• Earthquakes, landslides, and sinkholes.
• Infestations by birds, vermin, fungus, or mold.
• Wear and tear or neglect.
• Nuclear hazard.
• Government action, including war.
• Power failure.

Make Sure You’re Properly Covered

At McKnight Insurance, we will review the different types of homeowner’s insurance to see what fits your needs. Feel free to schedule an appointment to chat more in-depth about these coverages.

By Leslie Radford, Advent Trinity Marketing Agency