Home Insurance Articles
Is Damage From Wild Animals Covered Under Your Homeowners Insurance Policy
2010-02-02
Perhaps you live in a rural area and have returned home from a vacation only to find that a raccoon was somehow able to enter your home. Your drapery was ripped to shreds, and lamps were knocked over and broken. Perhaps even a costly collectible was overturned and broken. Is damage caused by wild animals covered under your homeowner's insurance policy? The fact of the matter is that sometimes a home insurance policy will cover loss acquired from wild animals, but often times it will not. It depends on if it is deemed vandalism or not. Even if you call around and get insurance quotes before you call to report a loss, you may be out of luck if you do not know what your policy says.
If you ever come home and find that a wild animal has caused property damage you certainly should call your home insurance agent. Your agent will be able to tell you if you should submit a claim. If the animal was one that is deemed as a rodent by the insurance industry, your policy will not normally cover the damage. Of course, you will have to know what type of animal caused the property damage. Your policy may even have the exact listing of animals that the home insurance policy will not cover. For instance, bats, rats and other rodents are not normally covered.
When you are comparison shopping and looking for a homeowner's insurance policy, you may want to inquire about wild animal coverage. Most homeowners do not think to ask this question. In fact, most people wrongly assume that their home insurance policy will cover damages done to the home by a domesticated pet. The fact is that most policies exclude property damage, even when done by domesticated animals. Any damages done by termites, rats, ants and other types of wild animals are not usually covered either. However, if a wild animal that is not considered a rodent breaks into your home, it can be deemed as vandalism. Vandalism is covered under most standard policies.
Naturally, you will not want to wait until it's too late to find out if damage from wild animals is covered under your homeowner's insurance policy. You should read your home insurance policy thoroughly and pay particular attention to the exclusions. Every home insurance policy will have a list of exclusions that they will not cover. Insurance policies can differ by state as well. Always call and ask your agent if there is something in your policy that you do not understand.