Thursday, January 22, 2009

Homeowners insurance?


What is homeowners insurance?


Homeowners insurance provides financial protection against disasters. A standard policy insures the home itself and the things you keep in it.Homeowners insurance is a package policy. This means that it covers both damage to your property and your liability or legal responsibility for any injuries and property damage you or members of your family cause to other people. This includes damage caused by household pets. Damage caused by most disasters is covered but there are exceptions. The most significant are damage caused by floods, earthquakes and poor maintenance. You must buy two separate policies for flood and earthquake coverage. Maintenance-related problems are the homeowners' responsibility.

Home insurance basics

Home insurance basics

When shopping for home insurance, there’s much more to consider than how much your coverage will cost.
You need to buy the right type of policy. You need the proper level of protection, plus special provisions for valuables such as jewelry, your computer equipment and other possessions. You might also need additional coverage for such things as earthquakes or flooding.
Lending institutions usually require mortgage customers to purchase homeowners insurance. Don’t rely on the coverage levels mandated by your bank or mortgage company. Those levels are designed to protect the house itself, but not necessarily your possessions. That’s why it’s important to check with your agent or insurance company to make sure you have adequate coverage.
The terms of standard home insurance policies have been defined by the Insurance Services Office (ISO), so standard coverage is not going to vary from company to company, although rates will. There are three primary types of situations that enable a homeowner or renter to be eligible for a policy:
Owner-occupants of private homes: Individuals and families who own the private home in which they reside.
Tenants of residential premises: People who rent or lease the premises where they reside.
Owners and owner-occupants of residential condominium units: Individuals and families who own private condominium units used for residential purposes.
Homeowners policies can also provide limited property coverage for incidental occupancy, which is the use of the residential premises for purposes not residential (such as a home office or studio). This can be done only as long as two requirements are met: the premise must be occupied principally as a dwelling, and the premise cannot be used for any business purpose other than the incidental occupancy.

For More Details Visit http://www.insure.com/

Insurance Tips for Homeowners

Insurance Tips for Homeowners

You've unpacked your things and settled into your new home. But have you thought about how this will affect your insurance needs? Buying a home involves more than just making sure you have homeowners insurance coverage. If you've recently purchased a home, here are some types of insurance that may be impacted by your recent move.

Homeowners insurance

If you have a mortgage, your lender probably required you to obtain some level of homeowners insurance coverage. However, you'll want to make sure that the amount of coverage that you have will adequately protect you for all possible losses. Homeowners policies set coverage limits for specific items (e.g., jewelry), so you may want to look into purchasing a separate endorsement or a floater if you feel that you need to increase your coverage. You also need to know if you have "replacement cost" coverage on your personal property and if you are covered for earthquake damage.