Does Your Insurance Cover You in the Event of a Fire?

10/27/2018 (Permalink)

Fire Damage

Hopefully, you’ve never been through a home or office fire in Annapolis, Maryland. However, as part of being prepared for the unexpected, it’s important to make sure your insurance (home or renters), can protect your family and business in care of a fire.

You probably know someone who has been through a home fire.  They are eager to share lessons learned the hard way. One of those lessons is that insurance can help protect your family financially if a fire should affect your home.

Here are a few ways renter’s insurance can help protect you from fire damage:

1. Protect personal property. Your landlord’s insurance will cover the building and items that belong to the landlord, but your items are not included in that coverage. As a renter, you need a policy to provide replacement value of personal property lost from fire damage.
2. Prevent financial destruction from liability. Most renter’s insurance policies include protection in case you accidentally start the fire. Of course, this doesn’t cover intentional or criminal conduct.
3. Provide money for accommodations. Make sure your policy includes this coverage, which provides for hotel fees or the expense of relocation. A loss of use can help pay for you to live somewhere else if your current space becomes uninhabitable from a disaster, like fire.

Renters insurance is affordable, costing around $30 per month. It provides coverage of your belongings no matter where they are damaged or stolen, and it covers a variety of different types of disasters. Be sure to remember that flood damage still requires separate coverage, but fire and other disasters, such as wind, lightning, theft and vandalism, are usually covered. Coverage may have some limits, so consider getting a rider for special items that may be very valuable. It’s up to the landlord to have adequate coverage for the building and any furnishings that are included. Fire restoration can encompass many different types of damage including water, smoke and soot. A good restoration company will be able to handle all types of damage, working with you to minimize loss and clean your belongings when it is possible to do so.