
Buying your first house is an incredibly exciting step. Finalizing the paperwork, changing your address, and finally taking possession of the keys to your new place make you feel like you’ve crossed a huge threshold from renter to homeowner. Homeowners insurance is one of the topics related to your purchase, however, that’s not quite as exciting to consider.
For most buyers, buying insurance is little more than a necessary task, one of the many documents that has to be scanned, dated, and signed. After the dust has finally cleared, the boxes have been unpacked (most of them, anyway!), and you’ve spent a few nights in your brand new home, you’re likely to forget all about your insurance until it’s time to renew your policy, or until an emergency of some kind requires you to make a claim.
What’s Not Covered?
Some homeowners come up against an unwelcome fact when they talk to their insurance agent about filing a claim for damage. That fact is that some major categories of damage are not covered under standard
homeowners insurance sc. Those potentialities must be addressed separately through specialized policies or umbrella policies, or you as the homeowner could be left footing the bill for repairs out of pocket. Here are the top five things that you should know about that probably aren’t covered by your standard insurance policy.
1. Business Related Losses
If you operate a small business out of your home, things get very complicated. For example, if you have a commercial kitchen license and use your kitchen at home to cater special events, an emergency like a stove fire or flooding water fixtures could occur. This damage may not be covered by your homeowners insurance in SC, depending on exactly how your policy is set up. As you set up your small business, make sure you have the guidance of a knowledgeable insurance expert to help you establish both homeowners and commercial insurance and protect you from business related losses in your home.
2. Limits On High Value Items
A homeowners insurance typically covers all of the items in your home, but it might not cover the
full value
of all of those items. For high value possessions, your insurance policy probably has an upper limit on how much you can claim in the case of theft or an accident. This most commonly applies to jewelry, but items like artwork, musical instruments, and collectible items are also important to consider. You can make specific updates to your policy to ensure that the full value of your possessions are covered.
3. Mold Damage
Few types of damage are as costly to a homeowner as mold and mildew infestations. It takes intensive measures to remove mold completely, clean the area and replace carpet, flooring, and other materials, and resolve the issue that allowed the infestation to occur in the first place. A mold infestation may be covered by a standard homeowners insurance policy if it is the direct result of an incident included in the policy, but if it is simply a result of years of humid, warm conditions in a basement, attic, or garage, it most likely is not covered.
4. Damage From Neglect/Lack of Maintenance
You’re probably already familiar with the fact that your auto insurance policy does not cover the replacement of worn tires and brakes. Maintenance issues are typically excluded from insurance policies, and the same goes for standard homeowners insurance in SC. Your insurance provider assumes that you will conduct regular maintenance on the roofing, plumbing, electrical, HVAC, and other systems of your home. Simply neglecting these parts of your home’s infrastructure for years doesn’t mean that you can make an insurance claim when they finally fail!
5. Flood and Other Water Damage
This is a huge area of confusion for homeowners. Flooding from natural waterways is not a major concern in normal circumstances for most homeowners, except for those living near a lake or river. However, other types of water damage are often assumed to be covered by homeowners.
- Flooding from rain. If a once-in-a-century rainstorm floods your backyard and brings water into your basement, that water damage is most likely not covered under a standard policy.
- Sewer/drain backups. This may feel like an unforeseen and unpreventable emergency to you as the homeowner, but your insurance provider will most likely categorize it as a maintenance issue, and you will need to pay for cleanup and repair on your own.
- Water leaking through foundation cracks. If your foundation or basement walls are cracking, groundwater could leak through the cracks slowly over time, leading to water damage, mold, mildew, and other issues.
The Solution: Expert Insurance Advice From Priority Insurance
If you’re thinking you need to take a closer look at your homeowners insurance policy, that’s a very good idea! It’s easy to set your mind at ease and make sure that you are ready to withstand whatever emergencies the world throws at your home. Just make an appointment to consult with one of the insurance experts at Priority Insurance and we’ll go over your policy with you, explain what’s covered and what’s not covered, and help you fill in any gaps that you’re concerned about.
Of course, we’ll also do the research and let you know if you can get a better deal on homeowners insurance through the many options that are available in our agency. There may be opportunities out there for you to save money and get better coverage, but no one’s going to knock on your door and tell you about them! Working with expert insurance agents like Priority Insurance, LLC, who know the industry well, is the best way for you to uncover those opportunities and protect your assets at the best monthly rates.
We’ll even help you work through the complicated relationship between your
homeowners insurance and your small business, if that comes into play. As you launch your own business, it’s important to know from the start how it will affect your coverage for your home, your vehicles, and anything else you use in the course of business. Make your appointment with our experts today!









