A Closer Look At Home Insurance

By Theo Danier


Chances are your home is your biggest asset. Major disasters can and do happen from time to time, like an earthquake or a fire, do you have protection for these circumstances? Have you gone over your home insurance policy lately? For a property owner to have peace of mind, they should speak to their insurance agent each year to go over their coverage. Your situation may have changed since you initially took out your policy, and an annual review will help make sure you're getting the right coverage.

The two most common types of home insurance policies are:

Named perils: These policies specify the types of loss you're protected against, such as fire, lightning, explosion, smoke, falling objects, impact by aircraft or land vehicle, riot, vandalism, some types of water damage, windstorm, hail, and theft. You are only protected from the types of loss and damage that is specifically named on your insurance policy.

Second is Comprehensive: What it means is that there are a few specific exceptions, but everything else is covered. Loss or damage due to wear and tear, snow slide, landslide, acts of terrorism, and war are some of the types of loss typically excluded. Comprehensive insurance policies provide a homeowner with the highest level of protection, and should be the choice that people opt for.

There are a few crucial aspects of your policy that you should review:

Replacement of building guarantee: This will cover the costs involved with rebuilding the home, and that includes when the costs are more than the limit included in the policy. The cost to rebuild your home may be significantly more than what it was when you took out the insurance, so if a disaster like a wildfire or earthquake happens, know that changes in the market can affect the cost of the rebuild.

Earthquake coverage: There are usually additions that insurance policies have that will allow for extra protection in case of earthquakes. The possibility of an earthquake is always present no matter where the home is located, so look into protection just in case.

Broad water damage protection: Traditional insurance companies usually include some form of water damage protection. Sewer backup is usually not included in this for example, but it can be included if the homeowner would like to add it to the policy.

Building bylaw insurance: When a home is severely damaged, it may need to be rebuilt, and that means adhering to the modern building codes. The bylaws in your area may have changed since your house was built, or may require that you rebuild your entire home even if it's only partially damaged. Unless this coverage is taken out, the costs from a rebuild such as this will have to be paid by the homeowners. Many people forget to get coverage such as this. Without it, you could be out thousands of dollars.

Specialty property protection: Coverage for specialty items that the policy holder may or may not have is part of many home insurance policies. Typically, this refers to collectables, computers, sports items, luxury items like furs or jewelry, to name some examples.

A note for condo owners: Condo property deductible assessments, property damage and liability assessments, that are passed on to the condo owners when there are overages on the limits on the strata insurance.




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