Homeowners Insurance FAQ’s
People fail to realize sometimes how important homeowners insurance can be. The idea behind homeowners insurance is not just to collect a premium from the policy holder but to protect the policy holder from certain events. For example, if there is a loss that occurs on a policy holder’s property, depending on the coverage that the policy holder has, this event can be covered after the paid deductible. This is a small price to pay compared to the overall price of rebuilding a home or a garage with your own financial capabilities.
There are typically five different homeowners insurance coverages. Each policy covers different events beginning with the very basic in the HO-1 policy to the “all perils” coverage in the HO-3 policy. There is also the HO-4 and our HO-5 Premier Policy which are the renters and superior quality risk insurance policies respectively.
The HO-1 Policy
The HO-1 policy is the basic coverage policy for homeowners. It covers against 11 basic perils. The 11 perils covered in the HO-1 policy are fire, lightning, hail, explosion, riot/civil commotion, aircraft, vehicles, smoke, glass breakage, and theft. While it may seem that this covers a great deal of events, the HO-1 policy is very specific in these terms.
The HO-2 Policy
The HO-2 policy offers 7 additional coverages on top of the 11 perils mentioned in the HO-1 policy. These 7 additional coverages are falling objects, weight of ice/snow, collapse of building(s), sudden and accidental tearing apart, burning, and bulging, accidental discharge or overflow of liquids or steam, damage from freezing, and sudden and accidental damage from artificially generated electrical currents. Again while this may seem like a lot of coverage, there are still some events that are not covered.
The HO-3 Policy
The HO-3 policy is a policy that covers “all perils” or “all risks” except for the few that are excluded within the policy itself. The coverage in this policy includes most events on top of the 18 perils listed in the HO-1 policy and the HO-2 policy.
The HO-4 Policy
The HO-4 policy which is the “renter” or “tenants” policy protects the belongings of tenants living in a house, apartment, room, etc. against any loss that may come from the 18 perils listed in the HO-1 and HO-2 policies. On top of this coverage, liability and medical payments coverage is included. However, this particular policy does not protect the building itself, that is covered under the landlord’s policy.
The Premier HO-5 Policy
The Premier HO-5 policy is an insurance policy that is available to those homes that are 30 years of and newer or completely renovated within 40 years. This particular policy not only covers the 18 perils and “all risks” listed above, it also includes increased coverage in personal property compared to that of a standard policy such as the HO-1, HO-2, or HO-3. This policy covers building and contents for “all risks” and also at replacement cost. Check with your local agent to see if your home is eligible for such coverage.