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Show Choose a home insurance that meets the coverage you need Regardless of the size, age, construction or cost of your home, everyone still has one thing in common: If you owe money on your home, you will be required to provide insurance coverage. However, if you own the- home completely, unlike automobiles, you are not required to buy insurance, but few people are foolish enough to have an asset as valuable as their home carry no insurance. Thus, most people face the decision of where to buy their insurance in-surance and what type to purchase. Many different choices are available to the home insurance consumer. Generally, home insurance in-surance is sold in three different levels of coverage. A basic form policy (HOD covers the perils of fire, smoke, explosion, theft and several other perils. A broad form policy (H02) covers all HOI perils plus such items as freezing of water pipes, hitting your house with your own car, and several others. The third form of home insurance is called a special form policy or H03. It is much broader in scope than either the HOI or H02 policies and is now the most popular policy being sold. Other choices entering into the purchase decision concern the various options available. One of the most popular options is that of replacement cost coverage on your personal property. With this option in force, the personal property lost due to a covered peril is not depreciated de-preciated whereas depreciation is applied to damaged personal property under a regular policy. Another option is full glass coverage, which deletes the deductible on broken glass. A regular policy requires that you pay your deductible (usually $100 to $250) before the insurance company enters into the loss. A third option available is called contingent worker's compensation. This option would protect you if you hired someone to do work (i.e. mowing lawn, fix plumbing, carpentry, etc.) on your home and they were injured while working for you. Still another option is an earthquake ear-thquake endorsement which would cover your home for losses due to an earthquake. The options that you choose can add significantly to the coverage of your policy as well as the price. Talk to your agent as to which coveragesoptions he recommends for someone in your specific situation. Still other factors affecting your purchase decision are the price you pay for your insurance and which company you choose. Although it is possible to find large differences in price from one company to another, generally home insurance is competitively priced and differences dif-ferences in premiums are small. The company you choose to purchase pur-chase from can affect you in regards to how accessible they are, how financially secure they are, and . how quickly they can handle your claim. Finally, one of the most important aspects in your home insurance purchase is the agent with whom you will be dealing. If the agent is committed to serving your needs, and is willing to meet with you and explain your policy, you will be much more satisfied and comfortable com-fortable with your home insurance purchase. An agent who is accessible ac-cessible and willing to help you after you have suffered a home insurance loss can greatly speed up the claim handling process and be a valuable asset in your dealings with the insurance company and the claim representative. You should feel comfortable in calling upon your agent and having him review your policies as the insurance industry in-dustry is a rapidly changing field with, new options, coverages and changes being made frequently. |