Home Insurance Quick Glance

What is Home Insurance?

Home Insurance, also referred to as homeowner’s insurance or hazard insurance, is the fundamental type of property insurance that provides coverage to private homes. It is a hybrid insurance policy that combines an assortment of personal insurance protections--such as losses occurring to one’s home, its contents and loss of its use, meaning additional living expenses, or loss of other possessions of the homeowner—with liability insurance for accidents that happen inside of the home, on the home’s property or at the hands of the homeowner within the policy’s territory.

Home insurance requires that at least one of the named protected residents occupies the home; a dwelling policy is similar to home insurance, although it is used for those residences who don’t qualify for various reasons, such as age or vacancy/non-occupancy issues. All home insurance policies are classified as a multiple-line insurance product, meaning that protection encompasses both property and liability. Furthermore, home insurance possesses an indivisible premium, meaning that a single premium is paid for all risks associated with the protected home and property.

What is the Cost of Home Insurance?

The cost of home insurance is typically dependent on what it would cost to fix or replace the underlying house and which additional items to be insured are attached to the policy. A typical home insurance policy is a lengthy contract, which explicitly names what will and will not be paid in the case of various incidents or events. In the majority of contracts, claims due to floods are typically excluded; special insurance policies can be purchased for such possibilities.

A home insurance policy is typically distributed as a term contract—the contract is in effect for a fixed period of time. Similar to other insurance policies, the insured party is required to pay for coverage through the satisfaction of a premium. This premium, which is to be paid each term, will be lessened if it appears the house in question is less likely to be damaged or destroyed. For example, if the home is located directly across from a fire station, if it is equipped with fire alarms and sprinklers, the premium will be lessened as a result of the expected mitigated damage from fire.

Home Insurance in the United States:

In the United States, the majority of home buyers borrow money in the form a mortgage; in these situations, the mortgage lender always requires the buyer to purchase home insurance as a condition of the loan. This prerequisite is instituted by the majority of lenders to protect the financial institution from severe losses if the home were to be destroyed.

The basic home insurance policy in the United States will provide protection against the following 11 perils: lightning, windstorms or hail, civil commotion or an explosion riot, theft, damage from vehicles and aircrafts, glass breakage, smoke, volcanic eruptions, vandalism, personal liability and fire. In general, a home insurance policy in the United States will not provide protection for the following exceptions: damages sustained from floods or earthquakes.

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