Home insurance tips: How to make sure your coverage is adequate

You do not want to wait for a disaster to strike before finding out that your home insurance cannot take care of rebuilding your home. Here are some insurance tips that might be useful to make sure that your life will not be ruined by unforeseen circumstances:

Get estimates of replacement costs using web tools

You can use different tools on the internet to have an idea of your replacement cost. Some like AccuCoverage charges a minimal fee so you can go thru a questionnaire which you can complete in about half an hour. . Another good website is HomeSmart Reports which takes a shorter time to complete but gives you lesser details. These tools will give you a high and low estimate plus possible construction cost and custom features.

Replacement cost vs Policy Limits

Once you get your estimates for the cost of replacing your home, you can compare this figure to the limits of your home insurance policy. You will see this number on the declaration page of your policy. In case there are discrepancies and your insurance provider cannot explain it, then it might be the right time to shop for a new provider.

Best Value

Make it clear to your insurance provider that you do not want a cheap insurance but the best your money can get. Do not go for the lowest monthly premium but see what you really need to be properly covered.

Disaster coverage

Earthquakes and floods are not covered by your usual homeowners insurance policy. You might consider getting a special coverage if you are living in a high risk area.

Loss of Use

In case your home needs to be rebuilt, your insurance policy should cover for your rent and living expenses during the duration of the construction. If you check your policy and you only have two years for this, you need to ask for a higher limit or look for another insurer.