Reminder: What Your Homeowners Insurance Covers

Just about every homeowner knows they need home insurance to protect their property and belongings from the unexpected. However, it can be easy enough to purchase a policy and keep it year to year, even when you might need to update your coverage. Not enough homeowners check their policy regularly to ensure they have the right type of plan. Furthermore, not everyone knows what their policy even covers.

Luckily, CoverHound is here to tell you to review your homeowners insurance policy and know what is covered (and what isn't).

Your typical homeowners insurance

While there is no one type of policy that every insurance provider will have for the same price, there are some elements that are uniform across all basic homeowners policies. Here are some of the things that are covered in a typical policy:

Your home or dwelling: As this is likely your most valuable asset, homeowners insurance will cover damage to your house. Homes can become damaged for a variety of reasons, but having an insurance policy will give you peace of mind knowing you won't be left alone to pay for repairs. Your dwelling is considered to be your home as well as other structures that may be attached to it, like a deck or patio. When you sign up for a policy, you will want to have the entire cost of a rebuild in the policy.

Personal property: Of course, a home wouldn't be yours without your belongings in it. With all that you own, your homeowners policy will cover everything inside if anything is stolen, damaged or destroyed. Upon signing up for a policy, you will need to insure your belongings and claim any major valuables, such as jewelry and electronics. Some policies will cover personal property for the amount you paid, but it can be more worthwhile to insure them for the price of replacement.

Damage from wind, fire, smoke, hail, theft and vandalism: There are many covered circumstances where your homeowners insurance is essential. It's crucial that you know what is included in your policy, as there could be gaps that leave your finances vulnerable to damage. For example, a typical homeowners insurance policy will cover you in the case of smoke damage or a fire, theft and vandalism, hail and wind. However, not all instances are covered.

One of the trickiest parts of home insurance is dealing with floods and water damage, as coverage typically needs to be purchased separately for these circumstances. Because the damage from a flood can be so severe, those living in floodplains are generally required to have flood protection in addition to their homeowners insurance. For others, it is not required but should be carefully considered before skimping on coverage.

Other property structures: Do you have a garage in your yard or another structure, such as a shed? When you first sign up for insurance, you will likely include these structures in your policy. This can even extend to your fence. Should it be damaged and need replacing, you'll be glad this is included.