What does named perils home insurance cover?
A named perils policy only covers the threats and losses specially listed in your policy. If a peril is not listed, it’s not covered. You do have some flexibility to choose what perils are covered. Typically, your plan will cover the main threats to your home - fire, smoke, theft, and vandalism. What else is covered will depend on your insurer and if you choose to add additional protection.
What are the 16 named perils?
Here’s a list of named perils that can be included in your policy:
- Fire or lightning
- Smoke damage
- Windstorm or hail
- Vandalism
- Theft
- Explosion
- Riots
- Damage from vehicles
- Damage from aircraft
- Falling objects
- Damage from snow or ice
- Accidental overflow of water or steam
- Sudden and accidental tearing, cracking, burning, or bulging of home systems
- Freezing of home systems and frozen pipes
- Sudden and accidental damage due to a power surge
- Volcanic eruption
What is not covered by named perils coverage?
As the most basic home insurance plan available, you have the least amount of protection. But, knowing what is not covered is simple. If a peril is not specifically named in your policy, you do not have coverage.
If you are not sure if something is covered, speak with your insurance professional to get clarification. Never assume you have coverage or you could find yourself in a situation where you have a named perils home insurance claim denied.
A named perils insurance example
You have a named perils policy. As part of this coverage, you are only covered for fire and smoke, water, windstorm, theft, and vandalism. These are your named perils. On a cold winter night, an old tree falls on your roof. It was covered in ice and the extra weight caused it to fall. Since you didn't have falling objects listed as a peril, you are not covered. But, if the same tree were to fall as a result of a windstorm, you may have a case to file a claim.
If you had comprehensive home insurance or Broad form home insurance, you would be covered in both situations.
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