When I got my kids a dog, I had no idea that it could affect my homeowners insurance. I happened to run into my insurance agent in the store when I was buying dog food and he asked me what kind of dog we had. When I told him, he said I should stop in the office the next day. I had no idea that things like this could affect premiums, so I started asking what else could do it as well. I created this site to help others understand some of the finer points of homeowners insurance and what they should think about to manage their rates.
If you are upgrading some appliances and making changes to your home, there are some things that you want to inquire about with your insurance company. You want to be sure that you have any homeowners insurance that is necessary during the renovations, and see how the changes you are making to your home could affect your rate. It's very important to report changes about the home to your insurance company. Talk with the insurance agents about these things:
What Needs To Be Added During Renovations?
What type of insurance is needed during renovations? You want to check to make sure that if something goes wrong and a contractor or worker messes something up, or if there is a weather concern, that you can fix it directly. There may be an increased cost for this added insurance during the time of the construction, but you want to have it. You want coverage to protect your home, materials, and more.
How are the Renovations Affecting Rates?
What will renovations do to alter your current insurance rate? If you are improving housing materials that are more valuable, you want to be sure you have enough insurance to cover the items. If you are replacing items that could have been a risk to your home, but will now improve the value, then this could lower your insurance rates. If your house isn't assessed appropriately, it can affect you negatively when there is damage.
Recommended Price Reduction Options
Have the homeowner's insurance adjuster walk through your property before you begin, and after the project is completed, so they can tell you what different things you could do to reduce your rates. Also so they can see how the changes affect your rates. Adding in new smoke alarms, a new security system, or other things could bring your rates down, or balance them out if you are adding value to the home and need more coverage.
There are a lot of different things that you have to take into consideration when you are changing things around the home, especially if you haven't talked with your homeowner's insurance agency. Talk with a company like Northeast Insurance Agency and make sure that you are doing everything right, and that they are aware that your home will be worked on, so you aren't left with a problem that the homeowner insurance company doesn't want to pay for. It's better to be safe and have coverage than to be sorry.
Share24 October 2017
