Buying a home is a major decision, especially for your finances. Once the keys are yours, there are immediate risks, from fires and storms to break-ins and vandalism. Given the investment you made purchasing your house, it makes sense that you need reliable Wisconsin homeowners insurance custom-tailored to minimize your financial risk vulnerability. At Long & Company, we offer a selection of home insurance options designed to fit your needs, all at competitive, affordable prices.
Coverage Inclusions and Exclusions
Depending on what type of coverage you purchase, your policy may provide all-risk coverage with exclusions only for specific named events, or it may only cover damages caused by events listed in your policy. In general, these typically include things like wind, hail, lightning, smoke, fire, explosion, theft, and vandalism. However, certain events are almost always excluded from coverage or otherwise require an endorsement or separate stand-alone policy for coverage. Talk to an agent at Long & Company about coverage solutions that protect your home and belongings against excluded events, such as floods, earthquakes, sewer backup, and more.
What’s In a Wisconsin Home Insurance Policy?
Home insurance can compensate you for many different types of damage – not just the loss of your home. The various coverages in your policy can carry you through extensive loss, from structural damage and personal property loss to displacement and liability.
Structural Damage
How much would it cost to rebuild your home and clean up after a disaster? The costs are likely higher than what you owe on your mortgage or what you paid for your house. At Long & Company, we can help you find coverage that funds the cost of moving forward when your home is damaged due to a covered event, even if it means cleaning up and building from scratch. Your home insurance can cover the exterior construction of your home, internal finishes and fixtures, and the value of other structures on your property, such as storage sheds and fences.
Personal Property Loss
Disaster event damages go far beyond just the shell of your house. The things inside it are at risk of peril, too, and personal property coverage can help compensate you if they are damaged, destroyed, or lost due to a covered event. Personal property refers to the things that go with you when you move, from your furniture and electronics to your dishes, board games, books, clothes, and more. The cost to replace all of these items can be tens of thousands of dollars. Purchasing full replacement coverage can assure you can replace your items with new ones of similar comparison. If you elect actual cash value (ACV) coverage instead, expect to receive compensation for the depreciated value of your items instead.
Keep in mind that homeowners insurance usually features multiple limits for personal property coverage. The first is the overall maximum reimbursement, which is often set to a maximum of 50 percent of your homes insured value by default. However, there are also other limits that may apply to your belongings, such as for certain types of items like fine jewelry and art. Talk to your agent to learn more about category limits and how you can schedule additional coverage for high-value belongings.
Displacement
It may be hard to imagine a scenario that leaves you searching for emergency shelter, but it is good to know you are covered in case of such an event. Displacement coverage helps pay for temporary excess living expenses when a covered event makes your home uninhabitable. It can cover the cost of eating at restaurants when you don’t have access to your kitchen, visiting a laundromat when you cannot use your own washer and dryer, and paying for a hotel room or rent house while your home is repaired.
Guest Medical Payments
Sometimes accidents happen and people get hurt. When a guest gets injured playing in your backyard, slipping on a spill in your kitchen, or in some other way on your property, guest medical payments coverage can help pay for necessary medical bills. It often pays up to a few thousand dollars without any contingency of negligence or liability. In some cases, it may be enough to cover a medical deductible or emergency room visit – and potentially help you avoid being sued by the injured guest.
Liability
Even the most careful and mindful of homeowners can become liable for someone else’s injuries or property damages, whether due to direct fault or the fault of someone else in the household, such as a child or pet. Homeowners liability insurance helps pay for the cost of litigation defense if you are sued, as well as judgments or settlements against your case – up to the limits of your liability insurance policy. Certain types of lawsuits are excluded, such as those pertaining to damages caused in a car accident, but in general, homeowners liability insurance covers a broad range of incidents both inside and outside the home. At Long & Company, we can help you assess your liability risks and learn how much coverage you may need to protect your income and assets against liquidation and garnishment.
Ask For Your Free Wisconsin Home Insurance Quote
If you have a home in Wisconsin, you need insurance. Look to Long & Company for insurance that is competitively priced and personalized to mitigate your risks as a homeowner. We can shop and compare insurance options from multiple companies, answer your questions about coverage and deductibles, offer ongoing support, and also help you find additional ways to save, such as by raising your deductible or qualifying for discounts offered by your insurer.
Contact our office to ask for your free quote and learn more about how an independent agent can help you get the most out of your Wisconsin homeowners insurance.
