In Part 1, we gave your a brief introduction to Homeowners and talked about how much coverage you need on your home. In this section, we'll be getting into your PERSONAL PROPERTY and LIABILITY coverage issues you need to know about as a HOMEOWNER.
So let's get started..... :)
COVERAGE FOR YOUR STUFF
If your stuff is stolen from your car,
IT’S COVERED under your Homeowners Insurance!!!
There might be damage to your car though. THAT’S covered under your auto insurance. I’m sure you have car insurance ! ! ! (see 10 Ways to Beat the High Cost of Auto Insurance (Part 1) & (Part 2) )
This is the coverage that insures your personal property: Your sofa, dishes, clothes, television, stereo, art work, silver, china, watches, jewelry, blender and your socks. Generally, the amount of coverage the insurance company gives you for this is a percentage of the amount you have on the house. Usually it’s 75%. If you carry $200,000 on your home, then you’ll have an additional $150,000 for coverage on your personal property. Again, see your policy for your exact limits.
Most of the time, this is enough. Occasionally you’ll need more. You can’t reduce it, but there’s usually a provision to increase the coverage if you need to.
Here’s an important distinction on the actual coverages for your personal property as compared to the coverage for your house. You’ll remember that your house is covered for all losses EXCEPT for those specifically excluded. Your personal property is only covered for a specific list of losses. Here’s a typical list:
- Fire or lightning
- Weight of ice, snow or sleet
- Explosion
- Aircraft & vehicles
- Smoke
- Sudden and accidental tearing or bulging of heating or cooling systems
- Windstorm or hail
- Theft
- Riot or civil commotion
- Falling objects
- Vandalism or malicious mischief
- Sudden and accidental water discharge from plumbing or appliances
- Freezing of plumbing systems
****Once again it’s important to check your own policy language for the specific coverages for your personal property. If you’re not sure, just give us a call. 619-670-1000
Now before we talk a little about the most important portion of your homeowners policy -- Your Liability Coverage, let me mention one VERY COMMON MISCONCEPTION.
Homeowners insurance DOES NOT cover the mortgage if one of the owners should die. You’ll need MORTGAGE INSURANCE to cover that.
Life insurance can be somewhat overwhelming to purchase. You’re so afraid of
making a mistake.
It’s easy to incorporate your mortgage insurance TOGETHER
with your regular Life Insurance and SAVE TONS OF MONEY in the process.
Learn how with
If you own a home and anyone depends on your income to keep the home then mortgage insurance is a must for you! You have far too much invested in your home to allow those you love and provide for to risk having to lose the house if one of the bread winners dies.
It’s simple and easy and probably NOT AS EXPENSIVE AS YOU MIGHT THINK.
You can usually get mortgage insurance for your home for about the price of a DVD a month!
Think about it. Safety, security and peace of mind for about the cost of a DVD a month!
Liability Coverage
Remember we were talking about that LAWSUIT!?!?! Yes, it could happen to you! There’s ALSO coverage in your HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE for THAT !
Liability is the portion of your homeowners insurance that protects your home, your assets, your retirement savings and your future income!
Someone slips and falls in your place,
Breaks their leg, or cuts their hand.
(Bummer if it’s a Plastic Surgeon)
Your policy will pay whatever you’re legally liable to pay. (up to the limit of the policy, of course) That’s why at least a $1,000,000 limit is important there (especially if you live in California). Many offices will let you walk away with the standard $100,000. For just an extra $7/month, you get TEN TIMES the coverage -- Almost a crime not to take that.
If you own your home you should probably consider a Liability Umbrella. It gives you $1,000,000 coverage on your house and all your personal vehicles. You have just too much equity in your house and too much of your net worth tied up there to risk it by saving a few dollars a month.
Let me tell you a story….
Just this year a policyholder called me and told me that they were being sued because their son’s girlfriend accidentally let their dog out of the back yard. The dog made a beeline across the street and kicked the stuffing out of the neighbor’s dog. The homeowner was being sued by the neighbor for veterinarian bills that exceeded $3000 and for mental anguish, stress, and… well, you know the drill. Fortunately the homeowner had not only their homeowners insurance but also a Liability Umbrella standing between this crazy neighbor and everything they owned. Without that, this could have been their problem…
They could have been paying off this “little problem” for years. They could have risked everything they own in addition to their FUTURE EARNINGS by not having the foresight to get HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE and a LIABILITY UMBRELLA policy.
You can insure your home, your personal property and your liability exposure in one simple policy.
BUT WAIT ! ! ! ! THERE’S EVEN MORE ! ! !
Homeowners insurance also includes Medical Payment coverage. That pays for MEDICAL EXPENSES up to the limits of the policy for people who are on your premises with your permission and accidentally injured. And ALSO for people injured by your activities. Coverage doesn’t pay for medical expenses for you or members of your family that live with you.
BUT WAIT ! ! ! ! THERE’S MORE!!!!!!
You also get what’s called LOSS OF USE or ADDITIONAL LIVING EXPENSES coverage. Whenever your place is rendered UNINHABITABLE because of a covered loss, we’ll pay the cost to put you up someplace else while your place is being repaired. I’ve actually written checks to people sitting outside their burned residence to pay for a hotel. VERY COOL!!!!
This pays up to 24 MONTHS! ! Hopefully you won’t be out that long,
but it’s THERE IF YOU NEED IT ! ! ! !
BUT WAIT ! ! ! ! THERE’S SOME MORE!!!!!!
You know how things just get more expensive every year. We’ll automatically increase the amount of your coverage every month FOR FREE until your next renewal to keep pace with inflation. When you renew you policy each year, it will be for the newer IMPROVED amount of coverage.
BUT WAIT ! ! ! ! THERE’S STILL MORE!!!!!! (starting to sound like one of those Ginsu Knife Commercials..?)
I mentioned this up above but you might have missed it. If someone steals your checks or credit cards and you suffer loss cuz they’re out there spending YOUR MONEY, you’ll have coverage for that up to $1000.
“WOW”, you say!
And all that’s included in the Homeowners Insurance we provide in our office.
Hey, Let’s talk about Deductibles for a second….
The deductible is the portion of a covered loss that is your responsibility. They are typically available in amounts such as $250, $500, $750, or $1000.For example, if you had a $500 deductible, you would need to pay the first $500 of the covered loss and we’d pay the rest.Generally speaking, higher deductibles lower your premium, but increase the amount you must pay out of your own pocket if a covered loss occurs. Ask yourself how much you are willing to pay in order to save on premium. ... you know what, just ask us when you're in the office and we'll show you how simple it is to calculate.
SO what’s the best way to buy HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE ?
RULE #1 – Don’t over-insure and don’t under-insure. Get the right amount of coverage. Yes, you’ll have to estimate how much stuff you have.
RULE #2 – Take the biggest deductible you can afford. (within reason). Increasing your deductible from just $500 to $1000 will usually save you about $75 per year. Let us help you do the math to see how long it takes you to absorb the difference in the two deductibles.
RULE #3 – Get at least $500,000 of liability coverage (especially if you live in CALIFORNIA!) People just love to sue in good old CaliforNyeYay.
RULE #4 – Only get policies with REPLACEMENT COST coverage for your contents. (all of the policies we offer in our agency have this provision.) This is a cool one. Provision sez that if you suffer loss to your stuff, and you replace it, we’ll pay you what it costs to get a brand new one rather than what your old one was worth.
RULE #5 – Take the PERSONAL LIABILITY option in the LIABILITY SECTION of your policy. That gives you coverage for things like slander and libel. Californian’s, for some crazy reason, get all bent out of shape if you talk to them or about them the wrong way.
RULE #6 – Don’t forget to check out things like Special insurance for your baseball card or Precious Moments collections. There’s limits on those kinds of things. You might also need to look into waterbed liability, or business liability (if you run any kind of business out of your home.) And don’t forget EARTHQUAKE coverage.
RULE #7 – Only get a homeowners policy with GUARANTEED EXTRA REPLACEMENT COST (GERC) coverage for your home. (the structure!) This is SO IMPORTANT. We offer policies that will pay you up to an EXTRA 20% above the actual amount of coverage. F
or example, let’s say you’ve lost your 2500 square foot home to a fire and it was insured for $200 a foot -- $250,000. But there’s a recent spike in the cost of materials and the real cost comes to $285,000. OUCH! Looks like you’re going to have to dig into your pocket for $35,000! Not so with the policies we write in our office. Our company offers you, AT NO EXTRA CHARGE the GUARANTEED EXTRA REPLACEMENT COVERAGE at an additional 20%. Your $250,000 will actually pay you up to $300,000 to rebuild your home.
And don’t forget EARTHQUAKE coverage. I know there’s a lot to think about. So let us help you remember all of it. One step at a time.
This can be so simple and easy to do.
Why somebody wouldn’t buy HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE this way is simply beyond me.
BUT LET ME MAKE A LITTLE EASIER FOR YOU…
In our agency we offer you 5 different ways to pay for this. You have your choice of Annual, Quarterly, Semi-annual, monthly and SPECIAL MONTHLY…
“So what’s so special about SPECIAL MONTHLY,” you might ask.
We set it up for you and your monthly payment comes right out of your checking account: Same day; Every month.
(of course of your insurance is already part of your house payment, we’ll set things up so that continues just as it’s always been for you)
So, here’s what you get…
- Coverage for your home: The right amount so you sleep well.
- GUARANTEED EXTRA REPLACEMENT COST for your home. AN ADDITIONAL 20%
- Coverage for your stuff: TV, stereo, blender, dishes, clothes, etc.
- This coverage at REPLACEMENT COST (as I explained above)
- Liability Protection. (assets AND your future earnings)
- A place to live while we put your place back together
- We’ll walk you thru the whole process (probably will take less than 30 minutes)
- Confidence that you’re buying the insurance you need: NOTHING MORE, NOTHING LESS
It Just doesn’t get any better -
OR EASIER - than that…
You’ve got everything to gain and NOTHING to lose.
I look forward to talking with you soon!
It's a Good Life !
Dennis Volz Insurance Agency
10783 Jamacha Bl, Suite 1, Spring Valley, CA 91978
OFFICE: (619) 670-1000 - FAX: (619) 670-1121 - Cell (619) 339-1339
Email: Dennis@DennisVolzInsurance.com
Websites: Company Site: DennisVolzInsurance.com
Spring Valley Auto Insurance Quote, Renters Insurance Quote, Homeowners Insurance Quote
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This post contains only a general description of coverages and is not your insurance contract. Details of coverage or limits can vary. All coverages are determined by the terms, provisions, exclusions and conditions of your policy along with any endorsements.
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