Home insurance is meant to protect you against theft or damage to your property. However, in some cases your insurance may not cover damage after a storm or other calamity. If you know what causes insurance companies to deny insurance claims, you can prevent this from happening to you, before an accident or other incident occurs.
Filing A Large Number of Claims
According to financial expert Dave Ramsey, the most common reason that claims get denied is that you make too many in a short period of time. While insurance is meant to cover you in the event of a loss, the expectation is that losses will be few and far between. Insurance companies lose money if they have to pay out claims frequently; thus, they may deny a claim if you've already had several. To avoid this problem, don't file a claim unless you have major losses that you can't pay for any other way.
Living In Unsafe Conditions
If you live in conditions that make it more likely that you will suffer losses, your insurer may choose not to cover the losses if they occur as a result of your living conditions. For example, if you live near a fault line, you may not be covered if you suffer damages as the result of an earthquake. Some insurers also will not cover you if you take certain risks. For example, if you have a Rottweiler or other aggressive dog, your insurer may refuse to cover injuries resulting from dog bites.
Living In An Older Home
If you live in an older home that has lots of maintenance issues, the home may be considered uninsurable. Maintenance issues such as leaky roofs or faulty electrical wires are your responsibility to fix; if you suffer damages due to poor maintenance, your insurer may decide you are liable for the damage.
Damages Not Exceeding Deductible
Your insurance policy comes with a deductible -- an amount you have to pay out of pocket before your insurance kicks in. If your damages are less than your deductible, you are not entitled to any money from your insurance company.
Excluded Events
Your home insurance may not cover every eventuality. Some insurance policies specifically exclude certain events. For example, you may need to buy flood or fire insurance if you want damage from those events covered. If you try to claim an excluded event, your insurer will deny the claim.Many of these problems are preventable with a little forethought. Please contact Tabitha E Walker Insurance Agency at 540-657-5633 if you have questions about what type of Fredericksburg home insurance policy is right for you.