Are There Areas of a Home that are Not Covered by Home Insurance?

Most home insurance coverage applies depending on the type of damage done rather than where it occurs in your home, but there are some areas that may be harder to insure than others. It is important to analyze your policy for any exclusions or limitations that many homeowners tend to overlook.

Roof

Your home’s roof is typically the most expensive area of your home to insure. It generally has a high value and is crucial to the rest of your home’s structure and safety. In fact, some insurers will not insure your roof until it is updated, especially on much older homes. Make sure that if there are any updates done to your roof that your policy reflects these changes. If the value of your roof goes up but you don’t notify your insurer, you could have gaps in your coverage when it comes time to file a claim for roof damage.

Unattached Structures

Home insurance includes dwelling coverage, which covers the physical home and its attached structures from fire, wind, hail, lightning, smoke, explosions and more. Unattached structures and other outdoor items may not be covered, however. Fences, outdoor signs and unattached gazebos or garages are frequently excluded or have limited coverage under a basic home insurance policy.

Basements

If you live in a state where basements are common, you may want to check that your home insurance policy doesn’t have exclusions or limitations. Floods are common and often expensive in basements, so many home insurance policies—even with additional flood coverage—may not cover issues in the lowest part of your home. Make sure to ask your insurer if an additional sewage backup coverage will cover sewer issues in your basement. Without additional coverage, you could be looking to pay for a flooded or damaged basement all out of pocket.

Updated Areas

If you update your home, you should adjust your home insurance to reflect the changes. If you don’t notify your insurer about the changes and an accident occurs, those new updates may not be covered. For example, if you just put in new permanent light fixtures but didn’t notify your insurer, damage to those light fixtures may not be covered, since they were not reflected on your home insurance coverage. Be sure to notify your insurance agent about all changes to your home.