5 Reasons to Review Your Homeowner’s Insurance

Homeowner tips on reviewing your insurance policy.  The policy is a contract between you and the insurance company. If it’s not in the contract, it’s not covered.  Here are 5 reasons why you should review your policy on the regular:

1. Lots of people did home improvements over the last couple of years. Did you go from linoleum to wood flooring? Tile to granite? Install new windows? Add square footage? If you did, it’s important to update the coverage for replacement cost for these items. If you did any of these improvements, you have increased the replacement cost.  It’s important to adjust the coverage to account for the increase in value.
2. Your personal contents have increased. When you first start out as a homeowner, it’s possible the amount of furniture and other personal items is minimal. But as time goes on, you buy more stuff and next thing you know your cabinets, closet and garage are full of your stuff. Musical instruments, expensive jewelry, etc. Make sure your contents coverage is sufficient.
3. Has the value of your home changed recently? I’m gonna say, YES, it has! If your house was worth $700,000 when you bought it five years ago and you have just let your insurance policy automatically renew without looking at the new replacement cost, you could be in for a rude awakening if you had a pipe burst or a fire in your home. Make sure your coverage keeps up with what it will cost to replace your home if you experience some type of catastrophe.
4. Did you install a home safety system? An alarm, cameras, etc. If you did, you should see if you qualify for a discount as a result.
5. Did you decide to rent your house? Whether you have a long-term rental or short-term vacation rentals, you should adjust your policy to reflect that it’s a rental.

These are just a few (of many) reasons why you should review your policy regularly. Some people don’t want to let their insurance company know that they’ve made improvements, or their value has increased because they don’t want their policy premium to go up. I get it, insurance is one of those things you hate paying for, but you’ll hate it even more if you actually need it and don’t have the appropriate coverage.

It’s also a good idea to price out different carriers every few years, be sure to price for the same coverage so you can get a true comparison of what you currently have.