If you’re a homeowner with a loan against your home, your lender will require you to have homeowner’s insurance. With that said, unlike a car, if your home is paid off, you are not required by law to have insurance. Your homeowner’s insurance will provide financial protection involving a disaster or accident in your home. However, it does not protect against earthquakes or floods. You must purchase those types of policies separately. Most policies are packaged together with general liability, which means it covers a homeowner’s legal responsibilities.
Would Water Damage Be Covered?
The big question is, what is a homeowner insured for? We’re going to focus on the plumbing side of things. First, we must remember that every carrier’s policy will have minor differences. Like everything else in our modern age of algorithms, each insurance carrier has its mathematical equation for figuring out risk and determining the cost. Like we said before, most insurance policies don’t cover floods or earthquakes. However, they would cover water damage caused by a broken pipe. Your carrier may not cover the “broken pipe,” but the loss would be covered.
Damage From A Broken Or Leaky Pipe
Plumbing damage from a broken or leaky pipe is generally covered by homeowner’s insurance if it occurs suddenly and unexpectedly. But a gradual, steady leak that causes water damage is usually not covered.
A Damaged Water Supply Pipeline
Water damage stemming from your plumbing system or appliances typically gets covered by the homeowner’s insurance. For example, suppose your basement or foundation floods because of a damaged water supply pipeline. In that case, homeowners insurance may help pay for repairs of the flooring and walls and replace any damaged furnishings.
What Homeowner’s Insurance will Not Cover
Although homeowner’s insurance often will cover a variety of plumbing concerns, it will not generally cover avoidable water damage such as slow leaking pipes that freeze in an unheated house. Furthermore, if mold develops due to avoidable water damage, the chances are homeowner’s insurance is unlikely to cover its removal or cleanup.
Does Homeowner’s Insurance Cover Plumbing?
After a catastrophic plumbing accident, your home insurance policy contains numerous coverages that may safeguard your house, assets, and interim living costs. Here are several ways you’re protected.
What Is Dwelling Coverage, And What Does It Cover?
Dwelling coverage pays for damage to your home’s structure and is part of your homeowner’s policy that could assist in reconstruction. Depending on the policy limits, it could also pay to repair or replace wet walls, floors, and cabinets. For example, your homeowner’s insurance policy will usually cover the damage if your home gets damaged by a broken pipe or a water heater problem.
Will It Cover Another Building On My Property?
Your insurance may cover other damage to buildings other than your primary dwelling. That suggests that if a covered plumbing accident occurs on your property, including a detached garage or guest house, your homeowner’s insurance will cover it as long as it’s within your policy limits.
Personal Property Coverage
Damage to your personal property gets covered under “personal property coverage.” For example, if a burst pipe causes water damage to your furniture, clothes, jewelry, or other “things,” homeowners insurance may be able to compensate you for the cost of replacement.
Loss Of Use Coverage
Other unexpected costs your insurance pays for, such as “loss of use coverage,” pay for hotels, restaurant meals, and other transitional living expenses. For example, if your home floods and becomes uninhabitable due to a plumbing mishap, your loss of use coverage might cover your short-term living costs while repairs are made.
Is A Slab or Foundation Leak Covered?
Another type of significant plumbing setback is a foundation leak. You’ll first notice a wet spot on our carpeting, tile discoloration, or possibly a dark area in the garage. In most cases, your carrier will cover slab leaks. But to be absolutely certain, check your policy. Again, your agent is an excellent person to talk with to get specifics on your coverage.
Homeowner’s Responsibility
The homeowners’ responsibility is to make an insurance claim to get compensated for replacement or repairs if your policy covers the ensuing water damage. You must also fulfill your policy deductible, which is the amount you must pay for each claim prior to your insurance paying for your losses.
Maintain Your Property Well
Your insurance carrier could deny a claim caused by poor maintenance. However, it’s the homeowner’s responsibility to take reasonable care of your property. Furthermore, they must take precautions to protect their home from mold, termites, or other pests.
A Little Advice
On a side note, if you have experienced water damage and you need to contact your insurance carrier, don’t use the word “flood.” The word “flood” has a specific definition that your insurance carrier uses, and floods are not covered. If your claim gets disputed for any reason, the reference to a flood will not look good. Big B’s Plumbing license #986152
