If you’re like most Americans, you have a lot of stuff — and you worked hard for it. Insurance policies are one of the best ways to make sure that your personal items can be repaired or replaced when an unexpected disaster occurs.
Homeowners’ Insurance and Renters’ Insurance
There are many different policies available for homeowners’ insurance and renters’ insurance, all varying in terms of what items are covered, and under which circumstances. Many common homeowners’ insurance policies will cover storm damage, fire damage, theft, and vandalism.
If you live in a busy city or neighborhood where crime is prevalent, you might also want to consider looking for a homeowners insurance policy that covers break-ins and theft of your vehicle. Some insurance policies — but not all — may consider your car to be an extension of your home. Auto insurance policies might not cover valuable items inside your car that are stolen.
Additionally, some homeowners’ insurance policies can also include items that are located in self-storage facilities. This is not consistent across the board, however, so it may be necessary to purchase additional insurance for these items if your homeowners’ insurance policy does not extend that far.
Similar to homeowners’ insurance, renters’ insurance can cover financial losses due to theft, natural disasters, and potentially even legal counsel in a lawsuit. If you rent an apartment or house with another roommate, you’ll probably each need to have your own policies to cover your own personal items.
It’s very important to review your insurance policy and figure out what is and isn’t covered. Water damage, for example, might not be covered under homeowners’ or renters’ insurance — but if you lose power during a storm and food in your refrigerator turns bad, your policy might actually cover the cost of replacing your food. Flood damage is often not included in homeowners’ insurance policies, so if you live in a region that is prone to flooding, you may need to purchase an additional policy that covers water damage.
Extra Tips
Insurance policies can be extremely beneficial in the case of an accident, natural disaster, or robbery. Nevertheless, these policies don’t cover everything in your home, or your bank account, so it’s important to stay vigilant.
- If you are going on vacation, tell a trusted neighbor about your plans and ask if they’ll keep an eye on your house. You can also arrange with the post office to hold your mail until you return.
- Try to avoid publicly announcing your absence online. If you go on vacation and want to share your adventures with friends on social media, make sure that your posts are not visible to the public.
- Monitor your credit card and bank card statements regularly. If a suspicious charge shows up, contact the creditor or bank immediately. Thieves often make very small “test” purchases on a stolen card before making purchases that drain the account.
- Record the serial numbers of valuable electronics in your home. When a valuable item is stolen, law enforcement authorities may be able to use this number to recover the stolen item.
Insurance policies can be complicated and insurers are sometimes difficult to work with. If you have any questions about your policy coverage, or if you need someone to advocate for you in an insurance claim dispute, contact a local attorney today.