A common misconception with insurance is that simply having a policy means that you are covered. There are actually many different factors that go into an insurance policy, with ways to both increase or lower the premium based on your coverage. That means it is possible that you don't have enough coverage to protect your home if you need to make an insurance claim because of the choices you made when getting the policy. If this is a concern to you, these tips should help make sure you have enough coverage to pay for everything.
Ask for Clarification
If you have never read an insurance policy before, it's understandable that you might be confused about the language used in the policy. You may end up reading it and still having no idea what is covered. Know that you can always talk to your insurance agent about your coverage and have them help decode the legal terms used in the policy. They are very familiar with these types of policies and can help you better understand what you have coverage for. For example, there may be misconceptions about if you have coverage for additional structures on your property, like a shed.
Increase Your Coverage with Inflation
A problem that you may not even be thinking about is how inflation affects the price of repairing your home. If you plan on staying in your home for a long time, chances that the cost to rebuild your home 30 years from now is not going to be anywhere near the cost to rebuild today. If you do not increase the value of your home in your policy, which increases your premiums, you may not be keeping up with the cost of inflation.
Labor and building materials will always go up in price, so you need to know you have enough coverage to pay for whatever the higher price is many years from now when you may need to make a claim. Ask your agent about how you can have your policy automatically increase the replacement value of the home every year to make sure you are covered.
Document Everything in the Home
If your home is in a total loss scenario, such as with a house fire, you must document everything that you lost if you want to have it replaced. Can you list everything that is in your home? Probably not, so you need to take steps to document this.
Your list does not need to be anything detailed. Simply taking photos of everything and storing them online will be enough to help jog your memory of what you had and what you need to claim. If you do not write this down in your insurance claim forms, you won't get the money back for what you lost.
For more tips, speak with your insurance agent, perhaps one from Accredited Insurance Group Inc.
Share22 July 2016
