Talking With Insurance Companies

If you want to make sure you are fully covered with your homeowner's insurance policy, you may need to boost your policy up a little bit rather than purchasing a standard one-size-fits-all policy. While most insurance companies offer standard policies, most also allow you to add to your policy to make sure everything is fully covered. If you are concerned about not having enough coverage, here are several different types of things you could add just to make sure you have enough home insurance if you ever need it.

Bump up your coverage to the replacement cost of your home

When you insure your home, your lender will require that you have enough insurance on the house to cover the amount of money you owe on the loan. If you choose to only insure it for the amount you owe, though, you might not have enough coverage. For example, suppose you owe $100,000 on your house and it is worth $250,000. In this example, you should determine how much it would cost to replace your home and insure it for that amount, which may be anywhere from $250,000 to $350,000. You can choose the amount you insure the house for, as long as it is close to what your house is worth or would cost to replace it.

Add floaters to your policy

A floater (also called a rider) is something you can add to your policy to cover personal property that may not be covered under your existing policy. For example, do you own a wedding ring that is worth $15,000? If so, this ring would not be covered completely on your existing policy, but you could make sure it is covered by adding a floater to your policy. With a floater, you will pay a little extra each month for coverage on a particular item. If something happens to the item, such as it is stolen or destroyed in a fire, your insurance company would reimburse you the total amount the item is worth.

Add flood insurance coverage

While your house might not be in a flood zone, which means you would not be required to have flood insurance, adding this type of coverage to your policy is often a good idea, just in case you need it. If a flood destroys or damages your home, the damages would not be covered unless you had a flood insurance policy on your house.

If you are not sure if you have enough coverage for your home, you should contact an insurance agency like Boone Ritter Insurance to speak with an agent about your needs.