A Guide to Your Homeowners Policy - United Policyholders · 2020-01-05 · A Guide to Your...
Transcript of A Guide to Your Homeowners Policy - United Policyholders · 2020-01-05 · A Guide to Your...
© 2016 United Policyholders, All rights reserved. Website: www.uphelp.org | Email: [email protected] | Federal Tax ID: 94-3162024
AGuidetoYourHomeownersPolicy
Insurancepoliciesareusuallydividedintosectionsorcategoriesbywhatiscoveredandthemaximumamountstheinsurerwillpayintheeventofaloss.Here’sabasicsummaryofthemaintypesofcoverageinatypicalhomeowner’spolicy.You’llneedtodosomemathandpiecingtogethertofigureoutwhatyourpolicylimitsactuallyare.Don’trelysolelyonyourinsurer’scalculations.Ifyoudon'thaveacompleteandcurrentcopy,askforone(inwriting)andmakesureyouandthecompanyadjusterareworkingoffthesamedocument.There'smathinvolvedinfiguringouthowmuchyou'reentitledtofordwellingreplacement,debrisremoval,treesandbuildingcodecompliance.Doyourbesttoreadyourpolicyoverandoveruntilyouhaveabasicunderstandingofwhat'sinit.Startbyreadingyourpolicy's"declarationspage".Itshowshowyourpolicyisdividedintocoveragecategories:
• Dwelling("CoverageA")• OtherStructures("CoverageB")• PersonalProperty("CoverageC")• LossofUse/AdditionalLivingExpenses("CoverageD")
Hereisasampleofadeclarationspage.Yourdeclarationpagemaylooknothinglikethis,butitshouldhavethesamebasiccategoriesandinfo.Seenextpageforcolorcodedexplanationsofcategories.
© 2016 United Policyholders, All rights reserved. Website: www.uphelp.org | Email: [email protected] | Federal Tax ID: 94-3162024
ReadingyourDeclarationsPage:
Dwelling(CoverageA):Thisisthe“bigticket”iteminyourpolicy.Youractualcoverageincategory“A”maybehigherthanstatedherebecauseyourpolicymaycontainincreasesvia“endorsements.”Wewillcallendorsements“extras”forsimplicity.Theextrasshouldbeexplainedinthepolicywording.Doyourownmathtocalculateyourcoverageandapplyallextrasyourpolicyincludes.Separate/OtherStructures(CoverageB):Usuallyonlycoversstructuresthataredetachedfromthemaindwelling(garages,retainingwalls,decks,fences,etc.)Thislimitmayincreasewiththeextrasdescribedunder“Dwelling”above.Ifyourdwellingisunderinsured,readyourpolicycarefullytoseeifanyitemscanbemovedintothiscategory.Contents/PersonalProperty:Thislimitoftendoesnotgetadjustedbutmaybeadequate.Youmayhavetolistandvalueeverythingyoulostbutaskifyourinsurerwillwaivethatrule.Yourinsurerwilldepreciate(oftenexcessively)andpay“ActualCashValue”untilyoureplace.Submitreceiptstogetpaidinfull.Getextensionsoftimewhenneeded.LossofUse/AdditionalLivingExpenses:Thislimitcoverscomparablehousinguntilyoucanmovebackin,andotherexpensesrelatedtolosingtheuseofyourhome.Itwon’tcovermortgagepayments.Thiscoveragecaneitherbeadollarlimitoratimelimitorboth.SomeALEpaymentswillbeadvanced;mostare“asincurred.”Submitreceiptsandinsistonfullreimbursement.BuildingCodeUpgradeCoverage:Ifyourpolicydoesn’tincludethis,contactyouragentandfindoutwhythiswasnotincluded.Youcan’trebuildwithoutcomplyingwithbuildingcodesandthiscoveragehasbecomestandard.Theamountisusuallysetinthepolicyasapercentageofyour“A”coverage.ExtendedReplacementCostCoverage:Anextrathatincreasesyour“A”andpossiblyBandDlimitsby25-100%.Readyourpolicytodeterminewhichcategoriesofcoveragethisextramayapplyto.Argueforthemaxifyouneedit.PersonalPropertyReplacementCost:Meansyourcontentsarecoveredatreplacementvaluesodepreciatedonlytemporarilyuntilyoureplacewhatyoulost.
Theinformationpresentedinthispublicationisforgeneralinformationalpurposes,andisnotasubstituteforlegaladvice.Ifyouhaveaspecificlegalissueorproblem,UnitedPolicyholdersrecommendsthatyouconsultwithanattorney.Guidanceonhiringprofessionalhelpcanbefoundinthe“FindHelp”sectionofwww.uphelp.org.UnitedPolicyholdersdoesnotsellinsuranceorcertify,endorseorwarrantanyoftheinsuranceproducts,vendorsorprofessionalsidentifiedatourwebsite.