Being a homeowner is a role you play as long as you are alive. Buying the home and maintaining it is not the end of the road. Even if everything is well and if there are no problems in it, it does not mean that you have done everything you can.
What if there is a bad storm and something goes wrong? What happens in the case of a fire, if the installations malfunction and your basement floods, or if your home is broken into and wrecked? The answer is simple, and it is home insurance.
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A Crucial Thing to Have
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The importance of having a good home insurance policy cannot be stressed enough. It is the most important thing you should have other than the home itself. Investopedia clearly states that if you have anything of value, such as a car, a house, or something else valuable that would hurt your livelihood and your finances if it got damaged or destroyed, you should have insurance to cover it. Any damages or losses that may happen should have a backup plan, and all such plans are actually insurance policies.
You will agree that this is great advice, no matter where you live and what kind of a home you have. You have spent the money to purchase the item, and are spending money constantly to maintain it, clean it, and make it more fun and comfortable. Why would you then not want to have it protected against mishaps and mayhems that can come out of nowhere? In the following sections, we talk about the importance of home insurances in India.
Standard Fire and Special Perils Home Policy
This is a basic policy offered by most insurance carriers in India. It is an umbrella policy that covers numerous issues that could come up at any given moment. This policy is good both for homeowners and for tenants who rent their property to others. Such a policy will pay for the costs of the building reconstruction, but that is where it stops. It will pay for nothing when it comes to damage to the land around or under the building.
This type of policy will cover all the following, plus more if it has been added and improved. You may also find some things on the following list that are not covered through your carrier. Check before you assume that this list applies to you and the policy that you have, or that you plan to get. Always double-check if the coverage is what you hoped for before proceeding with the deal.
- Protection against fire, floods, earthquakes, lightning strikes, volcanic eruptions, and most other natural disasters that Mother Nature may decide to throw your way.
- Protection against damage from people made instances, such as riots, bombs, or some good old fashioned vandalism.
- Protection against damage done by a road vehicle or a train, excluding self-made damage by your own vehicle or property.
- Protection against damage from utility issues, such as a burst pipe or electricity issues.
- Protection against missiles or other damages that happen due to acts of war.
Building Structure Insurance
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This policy protects you financially by covering your building from structural damages. It will usually also include any attached buildings, such as the garage or another facility on the premises. Your permanent fixtures will also be grouped under this policy. If you lose all your kitchen cabinets or bathroom fixtures, structure insurance will cover the costs of replacements.
Public Liability Insurance
This is an important one to have since it covers you if any person, other than the residents, gets hurt on your property or on your premises. This includes friends and family that are visiting, contractors that are working on your building, or even salespeople that come knocking on your door. As a homeowner, you can be held liable for any harm done to anyone inside your boundary lines especially due to negligence and the lack of signage.
Personal Accident
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This covers you and your family that lives with you. It will compensate up to a certain amount if disability or death occurs to anyone included in the policy. Some policies may even cover you if you are away from home and something happens. Visit this site to compare policies and get the specific details for your carrier.
Theft Insurance
This type of coverage will reimburse you for any losses that you may incur if a thief should choose your home to clean out. It is especially important that you have some type of itemized list that has all your valuables detailed out. This helps you figure out exactly what is missing and will help the authorities hunt the items down.
If you have special items that have identifying codes, write them down on the list as well. The more information that you have documented, the better off you will be if a burglar visits you and steals something valuable.
Contents Insurance
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This policy covers everything inside your house. You already have an itemized list, as described above, so your policy should be high enough to cover the overall expense that would come into play if something like that should happen. This policy covers everything inside your house if any of the instances listed under the standard package should occur.
Landlord and Tenant Insurance
If you own rentals, you should have a property owner policy to cover any damages that may happen There are restrictions on what it may cover so be sure you know exactly what your policy covers. The same should be said for people that rent property from landlords. You need to have enough coverage to cover your personal items that are inside someone else’s home.
Wrap Up
As you can see, home insurance policies cover you against anything that may arise and they come in many different forms. It is important to have these types of policies so that you do not end up losing your entire wealth if an accident happens, or if your neighbor decides to drive their car through your living room! Having home insurance in this situation is extremely important. If you would like to learn more about home insurance policies, click here.
The premiums you get are obviously an upfront cost that takes change out of your pocket, but in the end, the policy could save you a ton of money in the long run. It sure makes sense to have insurance that to be left to your own devices in an unlikely scenario. Many of them are never actually used, but better safe than sorry!