Clearly, not many people are faced with seeing their home burn down but damage and loss to your home can occur in many ways. Storms, gas explosion, vehicle accident and flood may spring to mind. But don’t forget that a thief will probably damage your house whilst gaining entry or might cause damage to your doors or decorations whilst ransacking your home. They may even try to steal the strangest of items – yes your toilet could even be on their shopping list!

If you have a leak, you’re responsible for having the leak repaired, but the structural damage caused by the leak will be covered by your Home Insurance. Often the cost of repairing a leak is small compared with the cost of repairing the damage caused. For example, a big problem can occur in the winter if the owners go away and a burst develops because of the cold. If the burst is in the roof, ceilings will come down and the water will damage a large part of the house. This happened to someone we know who returned after a Christmas break to find a stream of ice cascading from their front door. The house took two months to repair.

What else is covered? Falling trees, crashing cars, an aircraft landing on your house (or something falling from one), rampaging farm animals, earthquakes, explosions and lightening? Yes if your house is damaged you’re insured.

What about damage by vandals (insurance companies call them “malicious persons”) or a riot? Yes the structure of your home is well insured.

Are you covered for landslip, land heave or subsidence? Yes, and these can really cause major damage to your property. You are insured against all these perils but your insurer will want to know if your house is in an area known to be at risk from these problems. If you are, then these higher risks will be reflected by a higher premium.

Your Home Insurance cover allows you to claim for the cost of repairs or even the complete reconstruction of the property if it is damaged or made uninhabitable. If your home is rendered uninhabitable, most good policies will also allow you to claim for alternative accommodation during the repairs works.

When you consider the risks, no matter how remote some of them may seem, and the impact they’d have on you and your family, it’s best to be safe and insured.

And finally, if you have a mortgage, your mortgage provider will make it a condition of their loan that the property is insured and the insurance is maintained at all times. If you fail to do this, then they will probably require immediate repayment of the whole outstanding mortgage.

DUDUCTIBLES:

Today many agents are using substandard deductibles. For example in order to reduce the total premium a 2% or even 5% deductible will be placed on the policy. (Sometimes unknowingly to the consumer)
Example: If you receive a quote for a home insured for 5,000.00 with a 5% deductible; your responsibility would be ,750 before the insurance company would pay a penny.

CONTENT REPLACEMENT COSTS:

In order to lower the quoted premium significantly some agents are not including Replacement costs as part of the home owner’s policy.
If you suffer a loss do you want the insurance company to pay you the amount it takes to replace your loss at today’s cost or at the lower depreciated amount? Replacement!

IMPORTANT COVERAGE LEFT OUT:

Windstorm and Hail Coverage

We have seen quotes from a major carrier actually leaving out wind and hail coverage in homeowner insurance policies.
Living in Texas would you want a policy without Texas windstorm and Hail coverage? NO!

Discharge of Water

Discharge of water is also a coverage that some agents are leaving out of home owner policies.
Do you want the damage covered, if your hot water heater or a pipe bursts in you home causing thousands of dollars in damage? YES!

Back Up of Sewers and Drains

Are you covered if water backs up through a sewer or drain, or overflows from a sump pump?
Water backup can be caused by:
Blockages Due to Tree Roots
Blockage of Sanitary Main
Cracks in foundation leaks water into the basement

Foundation Coverage

Do you want the damage covered, if a waterline breaks under your foundation causing the foundation to sink
The foundation coverage endorsement is the most commen coverage left off Texas home insurance policies.

The internet is a great way to buy and sell products, but in this highly competitive market many agents will cut corners to quote the cheapest price. The problem is you may not realize that until it is too late.

Ask these questions before you purchase a Texas homeowners insurance policy:

How long has the agency been in business?
How many companies does the agent represent?
What kind of claim service does the company offer?
What deductibles is the agent quoting you?

Providing excellent service, coverage and prices for all your insurance needs. We are dedicated insurance experts in all lines of insurance products. We have over 10 years of insurance experience and provide excellent protection from the nation’s top carriers.

Purchasing a home is an exciting and responsible step in ones life. Whether it is your first home or one in many homes, owning a property is a person’s largest asset. When you purchase a house, you put your life savings into the down payment or the entire purchase of the property. The most important step after purchasing a house is to get it fully protected through homeowners insurance.  all the way from being the owner to renting out the property to a tenant but the most important step is to get your property covered and protected against any and all losses.

Homeowners insurance doesn’t only consist of coverage for the structure, but there are many coverages that are a necessity to a home. For example, in case of a wild fire, if your home burns down, it is not only the structure your losing but also your personal property, time off work, stress and money. Why would you buy a house if you’re not going to protect it and have a peace of mind if something happens to your property? The importance of having insurance coverage on your property is without a doubt mandatory. Homeowners insurance consists of many important and commonly forgotten coverages. Homeowners insurance includes coverage for the structure, personal property, loss of use, other structures, personal liability, animal liability, and medical payments.

Under homeowners insurance, you may schedule your valuable items and have a specified cash value in case of a loss. It is a very peaceful feeling when you know that the items you treasure are protected and can be financially replaced in case of a loss. Whether the damage is small like a minor wind loss or a big damage like a roof falling apart, your mind can rest assure when you know you are covered.

Home prices appreciate and depreciate, make sure to stay on top of your coverage to get the best coverage and price for the market value of your home in case of a loss.

At the very end, on top of all your coverages, you may purchase an Umbrella policy not to only cover your home but all your watercraft, autos, home business and personal liability. Just remember Flood and Earthquake coverage are not included in homeowners insurance. These coverages must be purchased separately.