How Maintenance and Homeowners’ Insurance Work Hand-in-Hand
As a homeowner, you may not see much of a correlation between protecting your home with homeowners’ insurance and keeping your home well-maintained. The fact is maintenance and insurance work together in protecting your investment. They are not necessarily exclusive of each other.
How does this relationship work? Well, as a homeowner, you have a certain obligation and commitment to keep your home properly maintained. This includes making sure any leaking pipes are taken care of promptly, your home is inspected for termites regularly and mechanical systems like HVAC, electric and plumbing are maintained. If they are not, you may not be able to rely on your homeowners’ insurance to step in to cover the cost of repairs.
Homeowners’ insurance is intended to repair a home should certain covered claims occur. These may include fire, storm damage, vandalism and more. If damage occurs however, because of lack of maintenance, coverage may be denied. There are multiple examples of this.
Let’s say, for example, you have an old roof that is leaking. Rather than repairing or replacing it, if it is allowed to continue leaking and water causes further damage, that damage may not be covered. The same could be said for termite damage or leaking pipes that have not been addressed promptly.
Homeowners’ insurance should not be confused with what is known as home repair insurance. This is coverage that may be purchased to help cover the costs of repairs of major appliances like refrigerators, washers, dryers and ovens. Those are totally separate products.
The bottom line is, as a homeowner, you should take responsibility to make sure you have appropriate homeowners’ insurance and you should maintain your home properly. This is the best way to protect your investment.
It can be easy to neglect certain maintenance issues on your home. It can also be easy to forget about your homeowners’ insurance. This is why you should conduct routine maintenance every spring and fall. You should also have a homeowners’ insurance policy review every few years. An insurance review will make sure your insurance is keeping up with rising home values and any improvements you may have made. Contact one of our independent agents for a no cost review. We may even be able to save you on improved coverage.
Maintain your home and maintain adequate homeowners’ insurance with an insurance review and price quote. Contact us today to learn more.
