Types of Homeowners Insurance

Buying a home is one of the biggest investments you’ll ever make! You need to ensure you’re doing enough to secure the investment and to protect yourself from avoidable financial losses. The way forward is to get a homeowner’s insurance policy that pays for any out-of-pocket expenses that you incur.

Let’s take a look at different types of homeowner’s insurance policies:

HO–1 policy
The HO-1 policy is also known as the perils policy. It only protects your residential property under special circumstances, known as the perils. These perils may include any damages caused by vandalism, riots, sandstorms, explosions, volcanic eruptions, lightning, or damage from other vehicles.

Although the HO-1 policy is a very basic form of homeowner’s insurance, it’s not a popular choice in Massachusetts because of the limited nature of the policy. It doesn’t include any allowances for additional living expenses, personal property, or liability coverages. It’s also a less popular choice because of better options such as the HO-2 and the HO-3 policy.

HO-2 policy

The HO-2 policy is known as a broad form policy and is a common choice for homeowners in Massachusetts. Other than the perils covered by the HO-1 policy, it also covers damage that may result from:

1. Glass breakage
2. Sudden discharge of water from the plumbing system
3. Any sort of discharge from the heating or cooling appliances
4. Sudden bursting of pipes
5. Bursting of pipes
6. Falling objects
7. Snow damage.

Although the HO-2 policy protects your personal property and belongings, it doesn’t offer liability coverage.

HO-3 policy

The HO-3 policy is a more popular choice for MA homeowners, compared to the HO-1 and HO-2 policies. It covers your personal property, additional living expenses, liability coverage, and medical payments. In fact, if you’re applying for a home loan in Massachusetts, your mortgage lender might require you to have the HO-3 policy in order to qualify for the loan.

This policy is also known as the special form policy and an ‘open peril policy’ because it’s not limited to any sort of peril coverage. The HO-3 policy usually protects your home and belongings from all sorts of perils, other than the clearly excluded ones. Common exclusions include floods, earthquakes, foundation issues, animal damage, wear and tear, and government actions.

Certain Insurance Services Springfield MA also provide additional coverage by adding an endorsement that removes any of these exclusions from your policy.

Are you looking for a group of reliable home insurance Springfield MA? Look no further than Western Mass Auto Insurance. Follow the link for directions to our Springfield office.