Is Your Outbuilding(s) Adequately Insured?

Do you have an old dairy barn on your premises? Did you just put up a new 30’x40’ storage garage? Are you operating a new business out of your garage? Do you board someone’s horse in an outbuilding on your premises? And most importantly, do you know if your homeowner’s insurance provides coverage for these buildings, and if so, is that coverage enough? Sue Gerlach, a veteran personal lines underwriter with West Bend, will discuss insurance coverage for other structures.

Most homeowner’s policies automatically provide coverage for “Other Structures” on your premises. However, there’s a limitation on the amount that would be paid if there’s a loss to the structure(s). The amount covered would not be more that 10% of the limit of liability that applies to your home.

So does your policy provide enough coverage to replace your “Other Structure(s)”? If not, you can purchase additional coverage by adding the form – Other Structures-Additional Limit to your policy.

It’s possible your insurance company may want to limit coverages on some structures, like an old dairy barn. In that case, the company may offer actual cash value coverage only and limit the amount it will pay for a loss. Or there may be a structure on your premises that’s in poor condition. The insurance company may choose to exclude this structure from coverage until it’s repaired. So, if you have outbuilding(s) on your property, You first need to determine if your homeowner’s policy will provide coverage to your outbuilding(s). Then ask yourself these questions:

Information Courtesy of West Bend