Common Homeowners Insurance Exclusions

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Home Insurance Exclusions: 10 Things Home Insurance Won’t Cover

Every homeowner needs to know the ins and outs of their home insurance policy, but sometimes knowing what isn’t covered can be just as important as knowing what is. Here are 10 home insurance exclusions that every homeowner should be aware of.

1. Mold Damage

Most home insurance companies exclude mold damage from their policies. Unlike a fire or tornado, insurers see mold damage as a problem that grows over time, and homeowners are expected to take preventive measures to prevent mold spores from spreading throughout the home. If left unchecked, mold can cause structural damage to the home and serious health issues for residents.

2. Floods, Earthquakes, Landslides

As many homeowners found out in Hurricane Katrina, flood insurance is not covered under a standard home insurance policy. For protection against flood damage, you’ll need to purchase a separate flood insurance policy.
Earthquake and landslide damage are also notable home insurance exclusions. You will need separate coverage for damage caused by these perils.

3. Aggressive Dog Breeds

If your pet is a poodle or a Chihuahua, your home insurance company probably won’t bat an eye. However, owning a pit bull, Rottweiler, or other dangerous breeds may make it difficult—in some cases, impossible—to find home insurance coverage. Depending on your location, insurer, and other factors, home insurance exclusions may apply to the following dog breeds:

  • Pit bulls
  • Staffordshire Terriers
  • Doberman Pinschers
  • Rottweilers
  • Chows
  • Akitas
  • Presa Canarios
  • Wolf-hybrids

If you own a “blacklisted” breed, you may be charged more for coverage or denied a policy altogether; you can ask your insurer to exclude your dog, in which case you’ll be financially responsible for any damage it causes.

4. Neglect

Insurers expect homeowners to care for their homes and repair minor problems. This includes sealing cracks, minimizing water damage, fixing damaged pipes, scheduling regular inspections, and more.
For example, if a storm causes your tree to fall onto your home, you’re probably covered. However, if your tree collapses onto your home because of a termite infection that went unchecked, you may be responsible for the resulting damage.

5. Sewage Backup

Infamous home insurance exclusions include sewer damage. For instance, if a toilet overflows and you have to hire a professional crew to mop up the mess, you’ll probably be left footing the bill. Sewage backup usually isn’t covered by home insurance unless you’ve purchased a separate rider.

6. Luxury Items

If you keep precious items in your home, you probably need to purchase additional theft liability coverage. According to the Insurance Information Institute, most standard home insurance policies only cover up to $1,500 for damage or theft. Items that may require additional coverage include:

  • Jewelry
  • Antiques
  • High-end electronics
  • Collectibles

Contact your home insurance agent if you have items that require additional coverage.

7. Power Outages

The most common and expensive damage occurs when power is restored, and a surge of electricity floods the home’s circuits. These electricity blasts can cause computers to lose information, electronic devices to overheat, and large appliances to malfunction. In addition to using surge protectors, home insurance companies expect homeowners to unplug all sensitive electronic appliances and leave them unplugged until power is restored.

8. Intentional Damage by a Resident

Intentional damage caused by a resident of the home is not covered by home insurance. For instance, if your teenage daughter purposely sets fire to your home after a heated argument, you’re on your own to cover the losses.

9. War, Terrorism, Nuclear Attacks

If your home is destroyed in a riot, you’re probably covered for the damages. But if a foreign army, terrorist attack, or nuclear meltdown damages or destroys your home, your home insurance policy won’t cover you.

10. Trampolines

Insurance companies consider trampolines to be an extreme risk to personal safety—and a lawsuit waiting to happen if a neighbor is injured while jumping on your trampoline. That’s why many home insurance companies refuse to extend coverage to trampolines, and your current insurer may threaten to cancel your policy if you purchase one.

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Child Proofing Your Home

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Parents worry endlessly about how to protect their children, but many overlook one of the biggest threats to their children’s safety and well-being — their own home. Experts say that children between the ages of 1 and 4 are more likely to be killed by fire, burns, drowning, choking, poisoning, or falls within the home than anything else.

In fact, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, about 2.3 million children are accidentally injured every year, and more than 2,500 are killed. That’s why it’s so important to childproof your home carefully.

We know that home safety measures can seem overwhelming, so below, we have provided some tips to protect your children from potential accidents properly.

Scope out the territory
The most effective way to ensure your baby’s safety is to take a baby’s-eye view of your home. Get down on your hands and knees and see how things look from down there.

What’s within reach? What looks tempting? Where would you go if you could crawl, toddle, or walk?

This will help you figure out which cupboards, drawers, and other spaces your child might get into. As he starts walking and climbing, you’ll have to reevaluate again, looking higher each time.

Carefully lock up or stow away every potential poison or other hazards, including cleaning products, medicines, vitamins, and knives. Use gates to limit your child’s access to areas of your home that might contain dangerous items.

Protect outlets
It’s a good idea to protect electrical outlets with outlet covers. Unfortunately, the removable little plug-in caps can easily end up in your baby’s mouth. Instead, replace the outlet covers themselves – at least those accessible – with ones that include a sliding safety latch.

If you’re using extension cords in your home, cover any exposed outlets with electrical tape.

Use caution with furniture and fixtures.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), more than 16,000 children under the age of 5 went to the emergency room in 2006 with injuries caused when television sets, bookcases, and other furniture and appliances tipped over on them.

Large or heavy bookcases, dressers, and appliances are real hazards: Bolt whatever you can to the wall. Push items like televisions back from the edge of the furniture they’re on or move them out of reach, and then secure them, too. Always put heavier items on bottom shelves and in bottom drawers to make furniture less top-heavy.

Install gates
Most parents consider safety gates as essential as childproofing tools. They allow you to open outside doors for air while keeping your child indoors, they contain him within a designated room, and they block his access to dangerous stairways and forbidden rooms (such as the bathroom or kitchen).

Unfortunately, if out-of-date or misused, safety gates can themselves pose a hazard to children. In general, look for gates that your child can’t dislodge but that you can easily open and close. (Otherwise, you’ll be too tempted to leave them open when you’re in a hurry.)

Never use pressure gates at the top of the stairs. Instead, install a gate that screws to the wall – it’s much more secure.

Check ties on blinds and curtains.
According to the CPSC, the cords on window coverings are a frequent cause of children’s strangulation, killing a child between the ages of 7 months and 10 years every month in the United States.

Window blinds pose a particular hazard because a baby’s neck could become trapped in the cords that raise the blinds or run through the slats. A child can become entangled in a looped window cord and strangle in a matter of minutes. Use cordless window coverings wherever possible, and avoid placing your baby’s crib near a window.

Secure your windows and doors
According to the CPSC, every year, about eight children under the age of 5 die from falling out of windows in the United States, and more than 3,000 are injured.

Always open double-hung windows from the top or fit them with locks to prevent small children from opening them.

Low windows shouldn’t open more than 4 inches. Window stops are available that can prevent windows from opening more than this. Some newer windows come with window stops already installed.

Window screens are not strong enough to prevent falls. To make windows safe, install window stops or window guards, which screw into the side of a window frame, have bars no more than 4 inches apart, and can be adjusted to fit windows of many different sizes.

Prevent drowning
According to the CPSC, more than 430 children under age 5 drowned between 2005 and 2009 – not in a pool, but their own home. Accidental drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4.

Most in-home drowning deaths involve babies in bathtubs. Never leave your baby unattended in the tub – even if he’s in a ring or bath seat. Supervise your child whenever he’s in the bathroom, and install a safety latch on your toilet lid to prevent him from accidentally falling in.

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Infographic: Most Common Personal Liability Claims

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Litigation frequency and severity are increasing at dramatic rates.   Thankfully, homeowners insurance can help protect you from many of these claims, but it is still shocking to see how expensive they can be.

For example, did you know that the average dog bite insurance claims now costs about $30,000 to settle?  Or that half of all accidental deaths in the home are caused by slips and falls?
With these items in mind, we have compiled an infographic of the most common personal liability insurance claims with tips on how to avoid them.

If you want to make sure your homeowners insurance policy provides the necessary liability coverage and proper limits for these types of scenarios, please feel free to contact our office.

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Preventing Falls in Your Home

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Did you know that falls are the number cause of personal liability claims on homeowners insurance policies?
Slips, Trips and Fall Prevention
Falls are the second leading type of unintentional home-related injury deaths. Falls occur most commonly in:

  • Doorways
  • Ramps
  • Ladders
  • Stairs
  • Crowded areas
  • Areas with uneven surfaces
  • ​Among older adults, falls can result in serious injury and an increased risk of fatality.

Fall Proofing Your Home
You can prevent falls by “fall-proofing your home.” Take simple steps such as storing objects within easy reach and keeping electrical cords out of the way. If possible, add handrails to stairs to keep your family safe and use non-skid bath mats to prevent falls in the bathroom. Teach children to pick up their toys when done playing and keep your own home clean by wiping up spills immediately. These are just a few of the ways you can keep the ones you love from slipping and tripping.

Older Adult Falls
Adults 55 and older are more prone to becoming victims of falls. You can prevent older adult falls by improving balance through exercise and visiting the doctor annually. Other precautions include wearing fitted shoes, knowing the side effects of medications, and storing those meds in a well-lit area.

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6 Tips to Stay Safe on the Road

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Auto insurance claims can be some of the most expensive claims you can face as an individual.  Therefore, implementing some safety tactics while on the road can go a long way in preventing potential claims and disaster.  The following six tips will hopefully keep you safe:

1. Stay focused on defensive driving

  • Keep 100% of your attention on driving at all times.
  • Use defensive driving techniques and be aware of what others around you are doing and expect the unexpected.
  • Don’t use a cell phone or any other electronic device while driving.

2. Practice safe driving tips

  • Build time into your trip schedule to stop for food, rest breaks, phone calls, or other business.
  • Adjust your seat, mirrors, and climate controls before putting the car in gear.

3. Prioritize car safety

  • Secure cargo that may move around while the vehicle is in motion. Don’t attempt to retrieve items that fall to the floor.
  • Have items needed within easy reach, such as toll fees, toll cards, and garage passes.

4. Make the time for driving safety

  • Pullover to eat or drink. It takes only a few minutes.
  • Practice defensive driving and give yourself time to react. Keep a 2-second cushion between you and the car in front of you − 4 seconds if the weather is bad.

5. Slow down

  • Don’t speed − it gives you less time to react and increases the severity of an accident.

6. Think safety

  • Always wear your seat belt and drive sober and drug-free.
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Arvada Home Contents Insurance

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Content insurance protects your personal property when you rent an apartment, a condominium, or a home. The owner of the property is responsible for insuring the building itself and any appliances or fixtures provided to you as a renter. But, unless you buy contents or renter’s insurance, you will not have protection for damages or loss of your personal possessions.

What will Content Insurance cover?

As a renter, you need coverage for your personal property and liability protection if you’re responsible for injury to someone else. Content insurance pays for damage to, or the loss of, your personal possessions that are located within your residence. Some policies will also cover your personal possessions, such as laptops or golf clubs that you might have in your car. A renter’s policy will also include liability coverage for injuries. For example, if your dog bites your neighbor, you might need liability coverage.

Saving Money on Content Insurance

  • Buy only as much coverage as you really need. Content coverage is for the actual replacement cost or your property’s actual cash value, not what you think it is worth. For example, a “priceless” family heirloom may have deep sentimental value, but your insurance will only pay for the cost to repair or replace it. Unfortunately, not all items can be replaced.
  • Consider higher deductibles. If you are willing to accept responsibility for a larger part of each loss, your insurance premium will be lower.
  • Reduce your risk. A sprinkler system or alarm system will reduce rates for most policies. And, if you have a dog that’s considered a “dangerous breed,” be aware that you may pay more.
  • Ask for a discount on your auto insurance.  Many auto insurers will give you a 5 or 10% discount on your car insurance when you insure your home or apartment with them. It’s worth it to check!

Complete a Home Inventory today

You’ll be surprised at what you have. A home inventory is the best way to document your personal property. Digital pictures or a quick video of each room and closet will help you get the most from your insurance policy if you ever have a loss.
If you would like to find out more about home contents insurance, please feel free to contact our office.

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Available Home Insurance Discounts for Arvada Residents

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We are often asked about the available home insurance discounts for Arvada residents.  With that in mind, we thought we would share a list of the common discounts associated with homeowners insurance:

Policy Discounts

  • Multi-Policy Discount: If you have more than one policy with the same insurance company, you may qualify for a multi-policy discount that gets you comprehensive protection and additional savings.
  • Exclusive Group Savings: Insurance companies will often offer exclusive group savings on home insurance to employees and members of more than 14,000 employers, groups, credit unions, or alumni associations.
  • Claims Free Discount: You’ll save on a new home policy if you have not filed a claim with your previous insurance carrier for five years or more.
  • Safe Homeowner Program: You don’t need to be a new customer to be rewarded for being a responsible homeowner. If your policy remains claims-free for three years, you could save on your premium.
  • Early Shopper Discount: Save on your home insurance when you request a quote before your policy with another carrier expires.

Home Discounts

  • Protective Devices Discount: Save on your home insurance by outfitting your home with protective devices such as smoke alarms, deadbolts, fire extinguishers, fire alarms, burglar alarms, or sprinklers.
  • Insured to Value Discount: When you insure up to 100% of the cost to replace your home (usually different from the market value or selling price), you may receive a discount.
  • Newly Purchased Home Discount: Receive special savings if you’ve recently purchased your home.
  • New/Renovated Home Discount: You may qualify for special savings if your home was built or substantially renovated recently.
If you would like to find out more about other discounts available to your home, please give our office a call.
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Renters Insurance Overview

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If you rent a house or apartment, your landlord’s insurance will only cover the costs of repairing the building if there is a fire or other disaster.  There is no coverage provided to protect your personal property or negligence.  You need your own coverage, known as renters or tenants insurance in order to financially protect yourself and your belongings.

Renters insurance includes three important types of financial protection:
  • Coverage for Personal Possessions
  • Liability Protection
  • Additional Living Expenses

The following is a brief overview of what renter’s insurance is and how it can protect you.

A. Coverage for Personal Possessions
  1. Determining a limit.  The first step to insuring your personal possessions is to determine an appropriate limit to replace everything in the even of a total loss due a fire or other covered calamity.  The quickest way to do this is by preforming a home inventory.  A home inventory will provide a detailed list of all your belongings and associated value.
  2. Type of coverage. There are two types of coverages available on a standard policy: replacement cost and actual cash value.  Replacement cost pays for the cost to replace your property with like kind and quantity.  Actual cash value pays to replace your possessions minus a deduction for depreciation.
  3. What disasters are covered?  A standard renters insurance covers you against losses from fire or smoke, lightning, vandalism, theft, explosion, windstorm and certain types of water damage (such as when the tenant upstairs leaves the water running in the bathtub and floods out your apartment or a burst pipe).  Every policy will have a variety of exclusions with the two most prevalent being flood and earthquake.
  4. What is a “floater” and do I need one? If you have expensive jewelry, furs, sports or musical equipment, or expensive electronics like a laptop, consider adding a floater to your policy. Most standard renters policies offer only a limited dollar amount for such items; a floater is a separate policy that provides additional insurance for your valuables and covers them if they are accidentally lost. .
B. Liability Protection
  1. Determining a limit. Liability coverage protects you against bodily injury or property damage caused to others due to your negligence. It pays for both the cost of defending you in court and court awards—up to the limit of your policy. Most standard renters insurance policies will generally provide at least $100,000 of liability coverage, but additional amounts are available.
  2. What about an umbrella?  If you need a higher liability limit, you can purchase a personal umbrella liability policy. An umbrella policy kicks in when you reach the limit on the underlying liability coverage provided by your renters or auto policy.  To purchase an umbrella policy, most insurance companies will require higher limits of liability on both your home and auto insurance.
C. Additional Living Expenses
  1. What happens if I can’t live in my home due to a disaster?   If your home is destroyed by a covered claim and you need to live elsewhere, renters insurance provides additional living expenses (ALE).   ALE pays for hotel bills, temporary rentals, restaurant meals and other expenses you incur while your home is being repaired or rebuilt.
D. Discounts
Insurance companies often offer discounts on renters insurance if you have another policy with them for your car or business. You can also get discounts if you:
  • Have a security system
  • Use smoke detectors
  • Use deadbolt locks
  • Have good credit
  • Have multiple policies
  • Stay with the same insurer
  • Are over 55 years old
If you would like to find out more about a renters insurance policy and how it can protect you and your family, please feel free to give our office a call.
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5 Strangest Cases of Insurance Fraud

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According to the FBI, did you know that insurance fraud costs insurance companies (and ultimately consumers) more than $50 billion each year? This equates to approximately $500 in increased annual premiums for each one of us.
Plus, when you start adding lost productivity for businesses, ruined family finances, and the cost to investigate and prosecute, the total figure is probably much higher.
For the most part, these fraudsters aren’t criminal masterminds. Here are five of the craziest insurance fraud scams we have ever encountered, from phony slip-and-falls to fake deaths to desperate business owners.

1. Four women made up a man, faked his death, and staged a funeral – tombstone and all. Four California women were convicted of wire fraud after they allegedly invented a man (“Jim Davis”), faked his death, and then staged a funeral. The criminals went so far as to purchase a burial plot for and bury him without a headstone. But despite the extravagant funeral described on paper for the financial assignment companies—including an ornate casket and elaborate floral arrangements—the funeral was a simple affair, attended by several phony family members recruited to play the part of mourners in case anyone was watching.
 
After two insurance companies launched an investigation into their claims on Mr. Davis’ $1.2 million in life insurance, the FBI arrested Jean Crump, Faye Shilling, Barbara Ann Lynn, and Lydia Eileen Pearce in 2010.
 
2. Security cameras catch two jewelry wholesalers staging a robbery at their own store. In December 2008, two New York City business partners hatched the ultimate plan to save their struggling jewelry business – a fake heist. Prosecutors claimed Atul Shah and Mahayeer Kankariva hired two men, dressed them in Hasidic Jew costumes, and staged a robbery at their shop. To cover their tracks, they poured chemicals into their security cameras to destroy any footage. They then filed a $7 million claim with their insurer, Lloyds of London.
Unfortunately for them, police were able to salvage the footage from the damaged security tapes. They showed the men entering their own safe and removing all the jewelry two hours before the supposed burglary.
 
In March 2011, both men were convicted of insurance fraud, attempted grand larceny, and falsifying business records.
 
3. A security camera captured a man allegedly faking an injury on a wrecked bus. When Ronald Moore saw what he thought was a serious bus accident, he hatched the ultimate get-rich-quick scheme: Pretending to be a passenger, he dashed onto the bus, clutched his back in pain, and later filed a claim for injuries, prosecutors claimed.
Unfortunately for him, the whole charade was caught on tape. According to Assistant District Attorney Linda Montag, the accident was a tiny tap by a taxicab. There wasn’t even a scratch on the bus.
 
Moore was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine and sentenced to 2 years of probation.
 
4. Woman files 49 slip-and-fall claims in seven years. When Isabel Parker rant out of funds to support her gambling addiction, the 72-year-old orchestrated 49 slip-and-fall scams at department stores, supermarkets, and liquor stores in three different states.
An investigation by detectives from the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Insurance Fraud Unit revealed Parker used as many as 47 aliases and 11 different addresses to file her claims, which totaled more than $500,000.
 
She was convicted of 20 counts of insurance fraud in 2003 and served a four-year sentence under house arrest.
 
5. Man allegedly uses Wikipedia photos to claim a $20,000 insurance policy on his nonexistent pet cat. Washington insurance officials claim Yevgeniv Samsonov tried to bilk his insurer out of $20,000 to cover his nonexistent cat’s death. In 2009 he claimed his pet died in an auto accident.
 
Dissatisfied with the offered settlement from the cat’s insurance company, Samsonov supposedly sent photos to prove the cat’s value. However, the adjuster’s quick web search for the insurance company proved the pictures were actually taken from a Wikipedia page.

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9 Tips for Keeping New Year's Resolutions

 

New Year’s Eve has always been a time for looking back to the past, and more importantly, forward to the coming year. It’s a time to reflect on the changes we want (or need) to make and resolve to follow through on those changes.

Unfortunately, while most New Year’s resolutions are made with vigor and hope, most people don’t make it past the first month with their resolutions.

We have provided 9 tips and tricks to help you achieve your goals and ensure your resolutions don’t fall by the wayside.

Please take a few moments to explore the attached tips and infographic to hopefully find a little insight and/or inspiration as you are setting your own goals for the New Year.

1. Make it something you really want. Don’t make it a resolution that you “should” want or what other people tell you to want. It has to fit with your own values.

2. Limit your list to a number you can handle.  It is recommended that you make only two or three resolutions that you intend to keep, That way, you’re focusing your efforts on the goals you truly want.

3. Be specific. To be effective, resolutions and goals need to be pretty specific,  Jettison the amorphous “exercise more,” in favor of “I’m working out at the gym Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 5:30 p.m.”

4. Automate. Automating financial goals can maximize your odds for success without you having to do anything,
For example, if your goal is to save $3,000 this year, calculate the amount out of each check, then arrange to have it automatically deposited into your savings account each time you get paid.

5. Make a plan. Rather than stating one daunting goal, create a series of smaller steps to reach it.
If you need immediate rewards, here’s a suggestion. “Ask yourself: What are the short-term goodies?” says Susan Wilson, co-author of “Goal Setting: How to Create an Action Plan and Achieve Your Goals.”

For example, if you want to exercise regularly and love spending time with your friends, getting the group together to walk regularly could give you a short-term payoff and help you meet the long-term goal, she says.

6. Be prepared to change some habits. One reason that resolutions fail is people don’t change the habits that sabotage them.
One potent approach is to realize that all you ever have is the present moment. So ask what you can do now that will get you closer to your goal.

It could mean trade-offs such as sacrificing an hour of couch time for your new goals.

Another good strategy is to arrange your life so you don’t have to wrestle with temptation.

7. Write down the goal and visualize it regularly. Writing and visualizing are effective tools for fulfilling a goal because they fix it firmly in the subconscious.
And if you write down your goals, put them in a prominent place where you’ll view them frequently, such as on the fridge or on your desk.

8. To tell or not to tell? Having someone hold you accountable can be a powerful tool. In general, making a public commitment adds motivation.
Skip the naysayers, but if you have one or two people in your life who will act as cheerleaders or coaches, share the goal with them.

9. Forgive yourself. If you fall off the wagon, jump back on. Many people fall into the trap of believing that if they stumble, they should give up.
The truth is you don’t have to wait for next year or for some magic moment. Instead, realize that slipping is part of the process.  Then, get back to your goals.

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