Â
Table of Contents
What is different Insurance Coverage for Your Home?
A specific type of property insurance, homeowners’ insurance, protects homeowners in the event of a loss. Homeowners’ insurance is typically a condition of obtaining a mortgage.
The best homeowner insurance covers theft and other perils, such as fire and storm damage. The policy may also cover the owner in the event of an accidental injury or death.
Generally, homeowners’ insurance covers all structures associated with personal residences (such as tenants and condominium unit owners), not just the home itself.
Insurance Coverage for Your Home
There are a variety of homeowners’ insurance policies to choose from.
HO-1 — Basic Form
HO-1 is the most basic form of policy for homeowner’s insurance and is the most affordable. There are no coverages for events outside the named perils in HO-1, a peril plan.
There are only ten risks covered by the most basic type of homeowners’ insurance: fire or smoke, explosions, lightning, hail and windstorms, theft, vandalism, damage from vehicles, damage from aircraft, riots and civil commotion, and volcanic eruption.
Many home insurers avoid HO-1 insurance because premiums for more comprehensive plans are only a few dollars more.
HO-2 — Broad Form
Policies classified as HO-2 cover a wide range of risks associated with owning a home. These policies, like HO-1s, only cover the perils specifically listed in the policy.
It is not uncommon for HO-2 policies to include coverage for personal belongings and personal liability. Insurance policies that cover all of the risks listed in HO-1 are known as broad policies.
On top of that, the HO-2 policy also covers accidental discharges or overflowing water, falling objects, and freezing household systems like air conditioning or heating. Also covered is the unexpected damage caused by an artificially generated electrical current. HO-2 also covers the weight of ice and snow.
HO-3 — Special Form
Homeowners’ insurance policies designated as HO-3s are a unique subset of standard homeowners’ policies. HO-3 is not a named-peril policy like HO-1 and HO-2 but rather an open-peril policy. In other words, unless the insurance company explicitly excludes a peril from coverage, the policy covers any risk, whether or not it is specifically named.
Many of today’s top home insurers offer the HO-3 policy. This type of policy typically covers structures attached to the home, such as a carport or garage. The policy should also cover personal possessions and liability if someone is injured on the insured property.
As a reminder, many insurance companies exclude earthquake and flood coverage from their HO-3 plans and offer them as a stand-alone policy. It is recommended that customers speak with their insurance agent about purchasing separate flood insurance. See if you qualify for private flood insurance.
The HO-5 — Detailed Form.
Homeowners’ insurance policies classified as HO-5 are the most comprehensive. Even though HO-5 and HO-3 are very similar in coverage, there are some essential differences. Complete homeowners’ insurance, like HO-3, is open-peril and covers everything that isn’t excluded from the procedure.
HO-5 pays replacement costs after a claim is filed, while HO-3 only pays out the actual value of a covered item. HO-3 only provides open-peril coverage for the home’s structure, whereas HO-5 gives open-peril coverage to personal belongings and the home’s design. You can also find higher limits of coverage for valuables like jewellery in an HO-5 policy’s coverage.
Depending on the insurer, there may be additional distinctions between the two policies. HO-5 policies tend to be more expensive than HO-3 policies, and fewer homes are eligible for an HO-5 policy.
HO-8 — Older Home Form
For homes that are at least 40 years old, HO-8 policies are the most common type of insurance. Materials required to rebuild a house built decades ago are often more expensive than the house itself. Consequently, insurance companies use this home insurance to provide affordable coverage to homeowners with older properties.
For example, HO-1 and HO-2 use named-peril policies for older home insurance. It’s common for homeowners’ policies to include coverage for a dwelling, personal property, liability and loss of use in the event of a specific named peril.
HO-8 policies include the same named perils as HO-1 policies. Rather than the replacement cost coverage included in HO-5, older home policies usually use everyday construction pricing to pay out claims, which means that a rough equivalent of the destroyed material can be used for replacement.
HO-4 Tenant’s Insurance for Renters
Renters’ insurance policies, also known as HO-4 policies, protect tenants in case of a loss or damage to their rented home. Protecting personal belongings and any permanent fixtures like cabinets is the goal of this type of policy.
Most renters insurance policies are named-peril policies, which cover the same risks as HO-2 policies. Personal belongings, liability, medical expenses for others, and additional living expenses resulting from a loss of use are all covered by renters insurance.
HO-4 does not cover structures other than those installed by the renter in residence.
HO-6 — Condo Form
Condominiums are covered under HO-6 policies. As the name implies, “walls-in” insurance refers to coverage for the interior of a building. In contrast, the master policy for the condo association will cover the exterior structure and common areas of the building.
The most common type of condo insurance is a named-peril policy. Still, some insurers will allow you to upgrade to an open-peril procedure, resulting in a higher monthly premium.
HO-6 policies usually cover building property, personal property, personal liability, and loss of use. As with other types of home insurance, HO-6 typically does not cover flooding, necessitating the purchase of additional flood insurance.
HO-7 — Mobile Home Form
Insuring a manufactured home requires a policy called an HO-7 policy. Houses like RVs, trailers, sectional homes, and single-wide and double-wide mobile homes are all covered under HO-7 policies.
HO-3-like policies are standard in mobile home insurance policies. An HO-7 policy generally covers personal property, liability, and dwelling. As with other types of home insurance, the HO-7 policy’s premium is likely to be affected by the structure’s age and size.
Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed this article… What are your thoughts?
Please feel free to share this article!
Fact Check
We strive to provide the latest valuable information for our readers with accuracy and fairness. If you would like to add to this post or advertise with us, don’t hesitate to contact us.  If you see something that doesn’t look right, contact us!