Home insurance is a bit of a beast. Getting a homeowners insurance policy might seem really daunting. To help you with either getting home insurance or just making heads or tails of a few of the finer points, we’ve put together this list of six things insurance agents want people to know about home insurance.
6 things insurance agents want you to know about home insurance.
1. Flooding is not covered by home insurance.
This one makes the top of our list of things to know about home insurance because many people assume that their insurance will cover flooding from heavy rain. But unfortunately, that’s not the case. To protect yourself financially against flood-related losses, you would have to get a flood insurance policy from the NFIP (National Flood Insurance Program) through an agent.
And the best time to protect your home is before your basement gets turned into a swimming pool. Flood insurance policies take thirty days to become effective, so you have to be proactive. There are very few exceptions to the thirty-day waiting period. (One exception is if you need to get the flood insurance in order to get, extend, or increase a mortgage loan.)
2. Many factors go into setting your home insurance rates.
There are a lot of details that go into determining your home insurance premiums. Which means that you’ll have to answer a few questions when you’re getting home insurance quotes. Insurance premiums aren’t the same across the board, and the reason why is that they’re based on how much risk you present to the insurance company and how likely you are to file a home insurance claim.
For example, the following are a few of the (many, many) things that can affect your home insurance rates:
- Where you live
- What your home is made of
- How much it would cost to rebuild your home if it were destroyed
- Your claims history
- How close you are to a fire station
- Your area’s crime rate
- Whether you have a monitored security system
- Your roof
- Natural risks (i.e. hurricanes, wildfires, etc.)
- Your credit score
3. Bundling your home and auto insurance can help you save money.
Question: Who doesn’t like to save money, especially on insurance?
Answer: No one!
Bundling your home insurance and your auto insurance means getting both lines of coverage from the same company. This can help you get a reduced rate on your insurance because many insurance carriers offer discounts to customers who bundle.
Get a quick homeowners insurance quote today.
4. If your neighbor’s tree falls on your house, your insurance pays, not theirs.
This one stings a little bit.
So, let’s say that your neighbor’s tree – oh, come on, it’s definitely on their property! – falls on your house or through your fence. It might seem logical that their home insurance should pay for the damage. But it doesn’t work like that. Your insurance would pay for the damage. Yes, that means that you’re out your deductible, but at least the damage is getting paid for…right?
On the flip side, if your tree falls into your neighbor’s house or through their fence, their home insurance would be the one having to pay for the damage. (Which your neighbor might not be too happy about.) Anyways, trees don’t really care which way they fall, so it’s helpful to know how insurance will view the situation.
5. It’s important to insure your home for its replacement cost.
It’s essential to make sure that you have enough home insurance to fully rebuild your home if it were destroyed by a loss like a fire, and that means insuring your home for its replacement cost, which is different than your home’s market value. The replacement cost is the amount it would take to completely rebuild your home from the ground up if it were destroyed. It might seem a little weird that you’re getting insurance for a different amount than you bought the home for or for how much your home would fetch on the market, but it makes sense when you think about it in terms of how much insurance you need for the house – enough to rebuild it.
6. You could get a discount for having a home security system.
Some home insurance companies will offer you a discount if you have a monitored home security system to protect your house. If you have one of these systems, be sure to let your agent know – they might be able to score you some savings on your premium. That’s because security systems are a major deterrent for theft, and they can also alert the police and get them to your house quickly if there’s a break-in.
So, those are six things that insurance agents want you to know about home insurance! And our own team of home insurance professionals also want you to know that we’re here to help you get home insurance quotes and make insurance easy. Fill out our online form or give us a call today to get started with your quotes.