At AFI Insurance, we love helping customers in and around Rolling Meadows, IL. find the best home insurance. For most of these families, their home serves as their largest asset. We don’t like to see new clients who did not get served well by their last insurer. Many of them call on us after they were dissatisfied with the way a claim turned out. In contrast, we proactively work to help our clients buy the best coverage and if needed, help with the claims process. Find out more about typical insurance claims and practices to help inform your purchase decision.
Facts About Homeowners Insurance Claims
The Insurance Information Institute, or III, offers data-driven insights about the industry. According to their research:
- Property damage, which includes theft, accounted for over 98 percent of all claims. Even so, only about six percent of all insured homes in the U.S. have claims in any given year. This includes threats from storms, fires, and theft.
- Fluctuations in weather and seasonal storms tend to account for most of the frequency of claims and areas where these claims may be concentrated in. This includes hail, wind, water damage, and lightening.
- Rated by the value of claims, fire, and lightning rank first. Followed by bodily injury and medical payments in second place and water damage in third place.
Water Damage and Mold
The category of losses that includes freezing, water damage, and mold tends to account for a high number of property claims each year. It ranks second in frequency behind wind and hail. Homeowners should note that typical homeowners policies won’t cover the kinds of water damage that storms and snowmelt might cause. For that, you need flood insurance.
Like most states, Illinois insurance companies can exclude covering mold unless another covered threat causes it. For example, if your base policy excludes floods, it will also exclude any mold caused by the water from that flood. That’s another reason why Minnesota homeowners need to consider buying flood insurance to complement their base home policy.
Land Movement and Sinkholes
Most people don’t necessarily associate Illinois with the sort of land movement risks that they might think common in earthquake-prone states like California. While earthquakes may be rarer in this state, stories about small sinkholes have grown increasingly common in the news. Typical home policies also exclude these sorts of hazards, so some homeowners may consider adding it in as a rider.
Bodily Injury
While property damage generates the most claims, bodily injury liability ranks second in total claim amounts. Typical contracts limit liability to just about $100,000, and the III reported that the average claim was just about $26,000. Still, high-worth individuals may want to consider increasing their limits to at least the value of all of their assets, such as their home, savings accounts, and other property.
Some homeowners may want to upgrade liability protection inside their policy. Also, umbrella liability policies will begin to pay these claims after base policies, like home and car insurance, have exhausted their payouts.
Get Help Finding the Best Home Policies at Affordable Prices
Here at AFI Insurance, we hope you never need to make a claim on your home policy. On the other hand, we’d much rather help you find comprehensive and affordable insurance before it happens, instead of afterward. Contact us today by phone or email. You can also ask for free quotes by using our online form. We want to save you money when you buy your policy and afterward, if you ever do have to make a claim.
