What House Insurance Normally Covers

Home insurance is designed to cover the loss of your property and belongings as a result of fire, theft and several other events. Cover will vary from policy to policy but, generally, a policy will provide cover for part or all of the cost incurred when your property or belongings are stolen, damaged or destroyed.

It is impossible to list just what is covered by your insurance policy here as this will depend on the insurance company chosen and the conditions of your particular policy. Just about all plans are however going to cover you for some or all of the following events:

Fire
Riot
Theft, including check forgery and counterfeit currency
Flooding due to plumbing overflow
Power surges
Ice, snow, or sleet weighing on vehicles
Lightning
Heating system malfunction
Unauthorized use of credit cards
Freezing of plumbing
Windstorm
Vandalism
Explosion
Hail
Smoke
Hot water heater bursting
Volcano
Falling objects

There are a variety of different types of property insurance policy, ordinarily referred to as a 'form' and the commonest forms are:

The Dwelling Fire Form. This particular sort of house insurance policy provides cover for just your dwelling and does not cover your personal possessions. Also, it does not give cover for your personal liability. As its name implies it only covers you for some events which normally extend to smoke, fire, windstorm, hail, lightening, vehicles, explosion and civil unrest.

The Basic Form. This sort of property insurance extends your cover to take in the theft of your personal possessions and also vandalism.

The Modified Coverage Form. The modified coverage form provides cover that is identical to that offered under the basic form but this type of cover is applied to older properties for which rebuilding costs are higher than the market value of the property.

The Broad Form. The broad form of property insurance extends cover further than that found in the basic form so that it includes damage caused by falling trees and other objects; damages caused by the weight of ice, snow and sleet and the freezing, rupturing or sudden accidental overflow of a air conditioning, heating, plumbing or fire sprinkler system or a household appliance.

The Special Form. The special form is the most commonly purchased form of homeowners insurance and provides cover against all risks unless they are excluded specifically within the conditions of the policy. Risks that are usually excluded include earthquake, flood, war and nuclear accident.

In addition to the forms of homeowners insurance listed here there is also the tenants form insurance for renters and the condominium unit owners form for owner-occupiers of condominiums. Further, owners of townhouses can take out an individual policy or might be able to get cover through an association master policy. Finally, in most states mobile home owners whose home has wheels and does not rest on a permanent foundation will be required to buy auto insurance rather than homeowners insurance.