Building Your Homeowners Policy: Additional Coverage Options to Consider
- 5 days ago
- 6 min read
When shopping for homeowners insurance, price matters—but so does making sure your policy fits your home and the things you want to protect.
A homeowners policy provides a strong foundation of coverage, but homeowners have additional options they can choose based on their property, belongings, lifestyle, and budget. Some of these coverages can protect against expenses that could otherwise cost thousands of dollars out of pocket.
At Oyer Insurance Agency, our goal isn't to simply sell you more insurance. We want you to understand the options available so you can decide which protections make sense for you.
Here are several coverages worth considering when building your homeowners policy.
Water Backup & Sump Overflow Coverage
Water Backup & Sump Overflow Coverage can help pay for covered damage when water backs up through a sewer or drain or overflows or discharges from a sump pump, sump pit, or related equipment.
This can be especially important for homeowners with basements.
Example
Imagine a severe rainstorm overwhelms your sump system. Water enters your finished basement, damaging flooring, drywall, furniture, and other belongings.
Depending on the circumstances and policy language, Water Backup & Sump Overflow Coverage may help pay for the resulting covered water damage up to the limit you select.
Another example could be a sewer or drain backup that causes water to enter your home.
What doesn't it do?
An important distinction is that this coverage generally protects against resulting covered water damage. It isn't necessarily coverage to repair or replace the sump pump itself if the pump simply breaks down.
Coverage limits and deductibles also vary by insurance company.
Who should consider it? Homeowners with basements, sump pumps, finished lower levels, or belongings stored below grade should strongly consider discussing this coverage with their agent.
Service Line Coverage
There are a surprising number of pipes, wires, and utility lines running underground between a home and the street.
Depending on the property and utility arrangement, the homeowner may be responsible for repairing some of those lines.
Service Line Coverage can help pay to repair or replace covered underground service lines on your property when they're damaged by a covered cause of loss.
Covered service lines may include things such as:
Water lines
Sewer lines
Electrical lines
Gas lines
Communication or data lines
Example
Suppose the underground water line running from the street to your home develops a covered break.
Fixing it may involve locating the break, excavating your yard, repairing or replacing the line, filling the excavation, and potentially repairing disturbed landscaping or surfaces depending on the policy.
Or imagine tree roots damage a covered underground sewer line and a portion needs to be excavated and replaced.
Those repairs can become expensive quickly.
Who should consider it? Service Line Coverage can be valuable for many homeowners, particularly those with older homes or long underground service runs.
Equipment Breakdown Coverage
Homeowners insurance is great at covering many sudden losses, but owning a home also means owning a lot of expensive mechanical and electrical equipment.
Equipment Breakdown Coverage is designed to provide additional protection for certain sudden mechanical, electrical, or pressure-system breakdowns.
Depending upon the insurance company and policy, covered equipment may include:
Furnaces and boilers
Air-conditioning systems
Water heaters (not for rusting out)
Well pumps
Electrical systems
Refrigerators and other appliances
Home security systems
Computers and home electronics
Other qualifying home equipment
Example
An electrical event causes a covered component in your home's HVAC system to fail and requires an expensive repair.
Or a covered mechanical breakdown causes your well pump to suddenly stop operating and it needs to be replaced.
Equipment Breakdown Coverage may provide protection when the cause of the failure meets the policy's definition of a covered breakdown.
What about an old appliance that simply wears out?
That's an important distinction. Equipment Breakdown Coverage isn't a home warranty and generally isn't intended to cover normal deterioration, maintenance, or equipment simply reaching the end of its useful life.
Who should consider it? Homeowners with expensive HVAC systems, well equipment, numerous appliances or electronics, or other costly mechanical systems may find this coverage particularly valuable.
Scheduled Personal Property
Your homeowners policy provides coverage for personal belongings, but certain categories of valuable property may have special limits or coverage restrictions.
Scheduled Personal Property allows you to specifically insure qualifying valuable items. Depending upon the insurance company and item, scheduling property can provide higher limits, broader coverage, and potentially different deductible treatment.
Commonly scheduled items include:
Jewelry and engagement rings
Watches
Firearms
Fine art
Cameras
Musical instruments
Collectibles
Sports equipment
Example
Suppose you own a $10,000 engagement ring.
Rather than relying solely on the coverage provided for jewelry under the standard personal-property portion of your homeowners policy, you may be able to specifically schedule the ring for an agreed or stated amount, subject to the terms of the policy.
Scheduling can also provide broader protection for certain types of loss depending upon the carrier and endorsement.
Who should consider it? If you own an individual item or collection that would be difficult or expensive to replace, talk with us about whether it should be specifically scheduled.
Mine Subsidence Coverage
This one is particularly relevant here in Ohio.
Mine subsidence is movement or collapse of the ground resulting from underground mining activity. Areas with historic underground coal or other mining activity can potentially experience sinking or shifting of the ground years after mining operations have ended.
Damage can potentially include problems such as:
Foundation movement
Cracked walls or foundations
Uneven floors
Doors or windows becoming difficult to operate
More significant structural damage
Example
Imagine an underground abandoned mine begins to collapse. The ground underneath a home gradually shifts, resulting in significant foundation and structural damage.
Mine Subsidence Coverage is specifically designed to address qualifying losses associated with underground mining activity.
It's important to understand that mine subsidence is different from earthquakes, landslides and other types of earth movement.
Who should consider it? Ohio homeowners should determine whether their property is located in an area where mine-subsidence coverage is applicable and discuss the available protection with their agent.
Earthquake Coverage
Earthquake damage is generally not covered by a standard homeowners insurance policy.
Earthquake Coverage can be purchased to provide protection for qualifying earthquake and earth-movement losses, subject to the particular policy's terms, limits and deductible.
Depending upon the policy, protection may apply to:
Your home
Other structures
Personal belongings
Certain additional living expenses following a covered loss
Example
An earthquake causes movement that cracks your home's foundation and damages portions of the structure.
Without applicable earthquake coverage, the homeowners policy may not provide coverage for earthquake-related damage.
Earthquake coverage also commonly has its own deductible structure, so it's important to understand how a particular carrier's coverage works.
Who should consider it? Earthquake exposure isn't limited to places like California. Ohio homeowners who want protection from this type of loss can ask us about available options.
Higher Liability Limits & Personal Umbrella Policies
Not every major homeowners claim involves damage to the house.
Personal liability coverage helps protect you financially when you're legally responsible for certain injuries or property damage to someone else.
Homeowners can select higher liability limits, and qualifying households can also purchase a Personal Umbrella Policy that provides an additional layer of liability protection above underlying policies such as home and auto.
Example
Someone is seriously injured on your property and alleges that you're legally responsible. Medical expenses, lost income, legal defense costs, and a settlement or judgment could potentially become substantial.
Another example is a serious automobile accident in which you or a family member is legally responsible for injuries to other people. If damages exceed your underlying auto liability limit, an umbrella policy may provide additional protection, subject to its terms and conditions.
Umbrella coverage can be particularly worth discussing if you have:
Significant assets or income
Teen drivers
A swimming pool
Rental properties
Recreational vehicles
Other circumstances that increase liability exposure
But you don't need to consider yourself "wealthy" to have a reason to carry higher liability limits. Future earnings can be just as important to protect as the assets you have today.
Building the Policy That's Right for You
There isn't one homeowners policy that's perfect for every family. One homeowner may want to keep premiums as low as possible. Another may gladly spend a little more for additional protection against an expensive sewer line repair, sump-pump overflow, equipment breakdown, or liability claim.
That's why we believe homeowners should understand their choices and decide what's right for them.
And many of these coverage options can be surprisingly affordable.
If you're reviewing a quote from Oyer Insurance Agency and would like to know the cost of adding any of these coverages, just ask. We can show you the available options and pricing without any obligation to add them.
Coverage descriptions above are general in nature. Actual coverage, limits, deductibles, exclusions, eligibility, and availability vary by insurance company and policy. Your policy and endorsements determine the coverage provided.
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