Questions You Should Ask When Buying Homeowners Insurance

If you own or rent, it is vital to have the right renters or homeowner’s insurance. Homeowners insurance protect your assists and provide liability protection in the event you cause injury to another person.

Homeowners may be required of you have a mortgage. And if you rent your landlord may also require liability insurance.

You have no idea as to what might happen to your home or personal property, and most people don’t have the resources to pay out of pocket in the event of a loss. Insurance is there to help you recover in the event of an unforeseen loss or claim.

Before you buy insurance, there are a few questions you should ask in order to get the best possible combination of coverage, price, and service.

1.    Are you using an independent agent? An independent agent like us has access to many markets and can shop al your personal insurance then proved you with many different price and coverage options.

2.    Have you considered the financial strength of the insurance company? Ask your agent to make sure coverage is placed with an insurance company that has a strong financial rating. You want your company to around if you ever have a loos. You can verify any information the agent gives through the NAIC (National

Association of Insurance Commissioners) Consumer Information Source. Your agent can also handle this for you.

3.    Do you know what kind of coverage you need? Have your agent review the various kinds of insurance coverage including; flood, earthquake, replacement cost, coverage for guns, jewelry, watercraft, and even a personal umbrella. 

4.    Have you determined the cost to rebuild your home for replacement cost? Most homeowners don’t have any idea how to develop this. Your agent will have tools to help you determine the replacement cost, but you will have to agree with the amount. Remember, replacement cost is not market value. Market value is what you can sell your home for, and replacement cost is the amount it would take to rebuild your home.

5.    Do you have a good idea of the value of your personal property? It is very important that you create an inventory of all your personal property and determine its replacement cost. A standard home insurance policy covers your clothes, furniture, electronics, tools, computers, appliances, and other personal items, but the amount of coverage will depend on how much your home’s structure is insured for.

6.    How much liability coverage do you need? This is particularly important, especially if you own a home or have other investments. Having more than $1,000,000 in liability coverage can protect your personal assists in the event of a large claim against you or tour family. If a claim exceeds your policy limit, you are responsible for all costs above that amount.

7.    How will your claim be handled? It is very important to have an understanding of how your agent and company will handle your claim.  Will your agent help you through the process? Does the company have a good track record? It will be important to work with an agent and company who will work with you to get the claims resolved to your satisfaction.

8.    Do you want to pay electronically or by some other way? Some companies offer electronic payment processing and offer a discount for doing so.

9.    If you own a pool, will that be fully covered? Pool scan is expensive to insure for liability purposes. Make sure you have coverage for your liability arising out of your pool.

10.    What is excluded? All insurance policies have exclusions, such as earthquake, flood, wear and tear, sewer backup, and intentional damage. Ask your agent to review these to make sure you have a good idea of what is not covered or subject to limitations.

11.    Are there discounts that will help reduce my premium. Most homeowner’s insurance companies offer discounts for things like; alarm systems, sprinklers, Distance to a fire station, building type, age of the roof, plus others. Make sure you ask for all the discounts if your agent has not already. If you are at least 55 years old and retired, for instance, you may qualify for a discount of up to 10 percent at some companies. If you have completely modernized your plumbing or electrical system recently, a few companies may provide a price break.

After family, the roof over your head and the wheels that get you where you’re going are among the more important possessions in your life. Because of this, flood and earthquake insurance shouldn’t be viewed as optional — today’s climate is fraught with natural disasters. Let us help you be protected from loss when Mother Nature strikes. Of course, you want to protect them and get repairs if they are damaged or harmed.