Are You Insured for Water Damage to Your Home?

Water is one of the most common causes of damage in homes, and it represents a large number of insurance claims. Water damage to your property can happen from any number of sources, such as from:

• plumbing and appliances
• severe weather or storms
• accidents
• infiltration 

Costs to repair water damage can be extensive, so it is always good to know when your insurance will cover a water damage claim.

If water damage is sudden and accidental, there's a good chance you are covered by most standard home insurance policies.

Depending on the type of insurance policy you have, you might have coverage for damage caused by water. Some basic water damage coverage is included in a standard home policy like an HO-3; other sources of damage might not be covered unless you add an endorsement to your policy. It really depends on the type of home, condo insurance or renters insurance you have. Your standard homeowner policy will include:

• Damages caused by the weight of ice, snow or sleet. This can cause roof collapse or water damage, among other problems.
• Discharge and overflow of water, even if it is an accident.
• Tearing apart, cracking, burning or bulging of a steam or hot water heating system. 
• Freezing of plumbing and pipes. (Note that some policies may contain exclusions for coverage of freezing of pipes if you left your home unheated during the heating season in areas with cold climates. Some insurance policies may also contain exclusions of coverage if you leave your home for more than a specified amount of time without having someone to look after your home. These types of clauses are specific to various insurance companies so just be sure and ask before you plan to be away from your home for any length of time).

If you opted for the least expensive type of policy, or if you're restricted to a policy like an HO-1 or HO-8, you might have very limited coverage. Unlike the other standard policies, these cover a very limited set of perils and will not normally include the items listed above.

If you're frustrated or confused by water damage coverage's and insurance, you aren't alone. Below are explanations and definitions of the most often confused water damage terms and what you need to know about your coverage if you have to make a claim. You don't want to have your water damage claim denied. 

Some types of water damage are pretty straightforward. It's helpful to be familiar with three of them. When you call to make a claim and to find out if you're covered, the insurance company may use terms like:

• Sewer backup or water backup 
• Overflow and discharge
• Flood

The source of water damage is not always obvious. The insurance company might throw some of these terms around when you call to ask if you're covered in a water damage claim. Before deciding if it is covered or not they will have to determine how the damage happened.

The insurance company will send an adjuster to manage your claim and they will investigate the source of the damage to see if it is covered. 

In some cases, water damage coverage may be added onto your policy. You can check to see if you have special water damage coverages like sewer backup added as an endorsement by looking at your policy's declaration page.