Homeowners Insurance Endorsements and Exclusions
Article 5 in 12 on Home Insurance
Homeowners Insurance Endorsements & Exclusions
While there's nothing wrong with having a basic homeowners insurance policy, you may benefit from extra coverage, which is called an endorsement. Take some time to really read your policy, so you'll know what's excluded (not covered) and in what areas you could benefit from endorsements.
Endorsements: A Fancy Term for Extra Coverage
If you need more coverage than your homeowners insurance policy provides, you can add endorsements to your policy to gain more coverage. These endorsement can include the following:
- As long as you have met the requirements of your policy, guaranteed replacement costs may pay to rebuild your home.
- Extended replacement costs insures your home for a specific value and usually adds a 20-25% extended limit if reconstruction costs run over.
- You can get an inflation guard that keeps up with inflation.
- Items such as jewelry, furs, coins, stamp collections, firearms, computers, and antiques, that usually exceed normal policy limits, can be covered under scheduled personal property coverage.
- If you have a secondary residence such as a summer home, you can buy additional coverage.
- Theft coverage protection, without proof of forcible entry, broadens your coverage to include personal items in motor vehicles, trailers or watercraft.
- Credit card and depositor's forgery coverage protects against loss, theft, unauthorized use of your credit card and also against the forgery of checks, drafts, or promissory notes.
Exclusions: A Fancy Term for What's not Covered
An exclusion is a specific hazard or situation your insurance company will not provide coverage for - that is, they are excluding this hazard from coverage.
Know ahead of time exactly what your homeowners insurance policy does and does not cover. Do not wait until disaster strikes. You will have enough to worry about at that point.
What are the exclusions outlined in your policy? Here is a list of common exclusions:
- Damage caused by wear and tear, rust, corrosion or deterioration
- Water damage caused by floods, underground water, or water that enters through cracks in your foundation (seepage).
- Damage caused by indoor plumbing freezing.
- Damage to the house exterior caused by freezing, melting, moving snow, ice, or heaving frost.
- Damage caused by snow slide, landslide, mudslide or other forms of earth's movements.
- Damage caused by vermin and insects.
- Intentional or criminal acts.
If your home is damaged by fire or explosion caused by the earth's movement, this may be covered, but be sure to check your policy.
