Home insurance does not cover all possible damages that a home may suffer. Neither do they cover all areas of a home according to the type of event or damage that may occur? Therefore, when taking out home insurance, it is very important to take into account which areas of the home will or will not be insured and for what damages.
We must, first of all, be aware that not all home insurance policies have the same protection framework. In some cases, the protection will be limited to the property as a whole. In other cases, it may also cover other premises such as garages, gardens, etc.
The other thing to know is that not all damage is covered by basic home insurance. Some damages are not covered in specialized policies either. For example, structural damage, hidden defects, or construction faults. These will not be covered in the great majority of home insurance policies, whichever area of the building they are found in.
Examples of damage that is not covered by basic household insurance
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The overwhelming majority of insurance policies offer inverse information on the homeowner’s insurance framework in the housing and the covered damages. Reverse information means instead of telling us what areas and damages are insured, they inform us what is not covered by the insurance policy.
For instance, it is common for a home insurance policy to inform us that it will not cover earthquake or flood damage. In any case, there is an obligation to inform in the small print of the contract of all aspects related to the cover. Therefore, if you want more information about your home insurance and the area of coverage it offers, this is the place to go before signing the agreement.
Damage that will not usually be covered in a basic home insurance policy are:
– Earthquake damage
– Damage due to flooding
– Damage due to lack of maintenance
– Structural or construction defects
In addition to these, there may be other extraordinary damages, such as catastrophes or wars.
In some cases, these covers can be incorporated into the policy by an extension of the insurance contract. In other situations, especially in higher-priced insurance policies, they may already be included in the insurance agreement.
What are insurance coverages A and B and how do they define the insured areas?
The first thing to bear in mind is that home insurance policies usually have different coverage options. In general, the main coverages of a home insurance policy should be the following:
– Coverage on the property
– Coverage of other structures
– Personal property protection
– Liability insurance
– Living expenses
– Medical expenses
As we said before, although all these coverages may be represented in an insurance policy, in some cases not all of them will be included. It may also happen that in some circumstances the cover is total, and in others, there may be an excess that must be paid before the insurance is effective.
For example, an excess in structure insurance requires the insured to pay the expenses up to $1000. The insurance will be triggered when the amount exceeds this amount. The excess can also be applied proportionally: for example, if the expense is $1000, the insured covers 30% and the insurer 70%.
What is Cover A in the area of home insurance protection?
The protection that home insurance provides for structural damage to the property is often referred to as cover A. This means that, for example, this would be the cover that should pay for the cost of rebuilding a house about the current construction costs.
What is cover B and what areas does it include in the framework of home insurance?
Cover B is used for the protection of other areas of the house. For example, protection to a detached garage, a fence, a shed, etc. would fall under Cover B.
This coverage, in the same way as happens with A, is set up to respond to the damage or destruction of the protected areas. Therefore, if our insurance includes the fence of the property as part of the insured items, its destruction or repair will be included in the policy.
Therefore, coverage A would be the areas of the household itself and coverage B would be the areas that are part of the property, but are not attached or physically connected to the house.
Home are protected under the framework
When reviewing which areas of your home are protected under the framework of home insurance, you should take into account the type of insurance contracted, the kind of policy, and other factors such as deductibles and excesses.
Home insurance is a very flexible product. There are more than 10 levels of settings and within each one of them the possibility of including different levels of coverage.
It is very important, therefore, that you carefully review what you want to protect and whether it is included in the basic coverage or if you should take out an extension of the insurance.
