Virtual University | Property-Coverages

ACV vs. RC Recovery in Liability Claims - Revisited

A burst water pipe in a neighbor’s yard causes water damage to flooring in your insured landlord’s rental home. The rental home DP insurer denies the damage, citing the “surface water” exclusion. The neighbor’s HO insurer says they only have to pay ACV and won’t replace mismatched carpeting that wasn’t directly damaged. What can your insured do?

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Coverage for Potted Trees, Shrubs and Plants Under HO Policies

Does the trees, shrubs and plants Additional Coverage in a Homeowners policy apply inside and outside the home? Does it apply to plants in a yard or to potted plants as well? Is there a difference in this coverage between ISO forms and between ISO and non-ISO forms?

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Insuring Grave Markers

Vandalism of grave markers at cemeteries is, unfortunately, a common loss exposure. When this happens, where is insurance coverage (if any) likely to be found? This article addresses the basic coverage issue. In a future update, we’ll address insurable interest concerns.

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Ordinance or Law for Your Homeowners’ Clients

Not to be overly dramatic, but ordinance or law is a very real personal lines exposure - often overlooked during the personal lines risk management and insurance planning process. Agents must explain the exposure, the coverage limits and the options. This article lays out the coverage, the problems and the options.

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Problems of Insurance to Value Forefront in the Insurance Industry

Statistics don’t lie, and all across the internet recently we see articles about underinsured homes throughout the U.S. After a loss is a terrible time to discover your insured’s policy limits are insufficient. How can today’s agents best help their insureds adequately protect their homes, even when it means a higher premium? Here are some tips to help you keep you better protect your insureds’ property values.

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Swimming Pools…HO Coverage A or B?

We often get questions about in ground pools and whether they’re HO Coverage A or B. HO guru David Thompson explains, with photos, why this isn’t always cut and dried, but provides some advice on how to reach a consensus with the underwriter.

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What is a Replacement Cost Estimator?

Replacement cost estimators are a tool in the property underwriting process, but they are not intended to be exact. They are an organized guess based on data that changes, at times very quickly. Agents writing either commercial property or homeowners’ coverage would do well to reivew this content.

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Direct vs. Consequential Damage in the Homeowners Policy

Here's the scenario: Windstorm and/or hail has damaged shingles on the roof of your insured's home. Since the roof is over 15 years old, replacing selected shingles with new ones will make the roof unsightly. So, of course, the insured wants the entire roof replaced. The carrier refuses, saying their only contractual obligation is to replace the damaged shingles. How do the ISO Homeowners forms respond?

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Insuring Gift Cards - Personal Lines

Gift cards have become an increasingly popular form of giving for Christmas, birthdays, and many other occasions. Each year, BILLIONS of dollars are spent on gift cards, many of which are never redeemed. If a gift card is lost or stolen, is there any coverage for the lost value under a homeowners policy?

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Just Because It's Not Covered Doesn't Mean It's Not Covered

The insured's brother-in-law was helping him clean up some storm damage when a tree limb damaged his lawn tractor. The adjuster denied the damage as a liability claim under the Damage to Property of Others because it requires the damage to be 'caused by' an insured. In this case, the adjuster might be right...but that doesn't mean the damage is not covered.

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Sublimits and Deductibles

When property that is damaged is subject to a policy sublimit, does the deductible apply to the loss or the sublimit? This is an age-old question, but it recently came up in an auto insurance claim. In this article, we'll present examples from both auto and homeowners to demonstrate how it works.

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When Does an Insured "Acquire" Property?

The HO 04 60 covers acquired jewelry (for a sublimit) if reported within 30 days. If any insured buys jewelry on March 7 but doesn't pick it up until April 3, when does the 30-day coverage period start? If the jewelry is stolen on April 23, is it covered up to the sublimit?

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Why Buy a Renter's Insurance Policy?

On October 4, 2009, while I was visiting my parents in Vero Beach, at 4:32 a.m. my cell phone rang and the caller ID showed it to be my daughter. I knew it was not going to be a good call at that time of day. She said, “Dad, my apartment building just burned to the ground.” She lost almost everything she owned. But here is the GOOD news....

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