What to Look for in New York Home Insurance

If you own or rent a home or apartment in New York, you will want to have homeowner's insurance. Homeowner's insurance protects you from disasters like fire, theft, and several other perils. In New York, you will also want to be prepared for the occasional hurricane. In the case of a disaster, not having enough coverage could be costly. Because your situation changes, it is a good idea to review your policy on an annual basis. There are several different areas of your homeowner's insurance policy that you need to take a look at.

Dwelling Coverage

When we think of homeowner's insurance, one of the first things we think about is the dwelling. This coverage deals with the physical structure of your home. If your home burns down, dwelling coverage will help rebuild it. If a tree falls on your roof, you will also be covered. Flood insurance will probably have to be purchased separately, through the National Flood Insurance Program. If you are renting your home, you will not need to purchase this coverage.

Other Structures

If you have a shed, detached garage, or other structure on your property, this part of your homeowner's insurance policy will cover it. The typical policy will cover your other structures for 10% of the dwelling coverage on your property, but you can choose to get more insurance if you need it.

Contents

Not only do the contents of your home need to be insured against loss by fire or hurricane, they also have to be protected against theft. This part of your homeowner's policy covers clothing, furniture, electronics, and other household items that you own. There may be limits to the coverage of some of the items that you own, like electronics and jewelry, so make sure that you understand what is covered, and purchase your additional coverage if you need to. You should review the contents of your home annually, to make it easier to file a claim if you need to.

Loss of Use Coverage

If your house is damaged and uninhabitable for a while, you will have to find somewhere else to live. You may have to eat out at restaurants instead of cooking your own food. Without enough loss of use coverage, you may have trouble paying for rent and a mortgage payment. Since it may take months to repair extensive damage, you want to make sure that you have adequate coverage. The typical insurance policy will cover you for 20% of the amount of dwelling coverage that you have purchased.

Personal Liability and Medical Payments

Although these are separate portions of the policy, they are similar. Personal liability protection will protect you in case there is a lawsuit against you. If your tree falls on your neighbor's house, this will protect you. Medical payments coverage will cover medical payments if someone is injured on your property and does not want to sue you.