Home Insurance Articles
Finding Out Whether Your Home Insurance Policy Covers Accidental Damage To A Neighbors House
2010-01-28
Believe it or not, sometimes an accident can happen that originates on your property and causes damage to your neighbor's house. For example, a tree on your property could fall and damage a neighbor's house, causing extensive damage to the roof. If an accident like this ever happens, you will need to know how to go about finding out whether your homeowner's insurance policy will cover it.
The best way to find out if your home insurance policy would cover such an accident is to call them and ask. The first thing you should know is that a home insurance policy will only cover a claim if there is actual property damage where a liability is involved. However, one thing to keep in mind is that most of the time, your neighbor's home insurance policy should cover any accidental damage that occurs to their own house, no matter where the damage originated from.
The rule of thumb is that your homeowner's insurance policy covers damage done to your property, and your neighbor's insurance policy should cover any damage done to their property. When an accident occurs that causes damage to your neighbor's house they should call their own insurance company to make a claim. The home insurance company will send out a claims adjuster who will survey the damage and ask questions about the accident. After they have all of the facts, the claims adjuster will ask your neighbor to get a few home insurance quotes from a few contractors who do such repairs. The home insurance claims adjuster can give your neighbor information regarding who they can call to do the repairs. For instance, they can give them a list of the names of roofers in the area. However, it will be ultimately up to your neighbor to decide who they want to do the repairs.
When an accident happens that causes damage to both your house and your neighbor's house at the same time, both home insurance companies should be called and individual claims for damages made. Both insurance companies will then send out a claim's adjuster to survey the damage and sort out the facts. Each insurance company will then be dealing with the same accident. For instance, say your tree has a couple of really large limbs that break off and fall on both houses during a wind storm. Whose homeowner's insurance will cover the damages done to both houses?
The bottom line is to go about finding out whether your home insurance policy will cover accidental damage to your neighbor's house. When the unforeseen happens, you will want to make sure you are covered for it.