Owning a home comes with a lot of challenges and responsibilities. In many cases, these challenges are not in your control. As a homeowner, you want to make sure that you do everything in your power to protect your home investment and your family. Having the right home insurance is important to ensure that your home is protected. When it comes to the exterior of the home, windows are most likely to get damaged first. They are exposed to the elements and more fragile than the rest of the exterior of the home. Does home insurance cover window replacement? This depends on what has caused the damage to the windows and what your policy states.
Let’s take a look below at how you would know if your windows are covered.
How Do I Know If My Home Insurance Will Cover The Damage?
Believe it or not, there is some very clear language in your homeowners’ insurance policy regarding damaged windows. If you hope that your damaged windows are covered you will need the following to validate this. Let’s take a look below at how you know if your home insurance covers the window damage.
- A neighbor or family member breaks the window – If an object is accidentally thrown in the direction of the window and the window breaks, this would be covered under the liability portion of the home insurance policy. Accidental damage might require you to pay the cost of replacement.
- Bad weather or break-in – There are moments that are considered peril by a homeowners insurance policy. Peril would consist of theft, hail, fire, vandalism, damage from a break-in, and any other violent or uncontrollable reason for damage. In this case, repair estimates will be needed and you will have to pay the cost of the deductible.
- Neighbor breaks the window – If they have liability insurance the window is covered. If they do not have liability insurance and cannot pay the bill you are likely going to need to hire a lawyer to get the window replacement paid for.
Keep in mind that lack of maintenance and general wear and tear are not going to be covered by the insurance policy. Paying for the repairs in this case will be up to the homeowner.
Filing a claim with your homeowners’ insurance company is necessary to get any answer regarding window repair. As stated, in some cases, you will be due to pay out-of-pocket deductibles before the insurance claim can be met to cover replacing your windows.
What Type Of Coverage Do I Need For Window Protection?
Depending on where you live, you might want a specific homeowner’s insurance coverage for your home. If you experience a high volume of threatening weather, you will want to ensure that you have the proper window coverage. Typically, an insurance company offers six types of coverage. They are called coverage A, B, C, D, E, and F. Dwelling coverage or coverage A might cover damaged windows. Additionally, structure coverage or coverage B and liability coverage of coverage E might also cover damages to your windows. Let’s take a look below at what these coverages mean.
- Dwelling coverage (Coverage A) – If a window is part of the structure of your home, it would be covered under Coverage A.
- Structure coverage (Coverage B) – A broken window that is not on the main dwelling, but located on a shed or detached garage would be covered under this policy.
- Liability coverage (Coverage E) – If someone accidentally breaks your window or if you accidentally break a neighbor’s window, the damaged windows are covered under this policy.
Other Recommended Maintenance
Now that you are aware of if your homeowner’s insurance will cover a broken or damaged window, you might want to read up on how long it takes to replace a window. Having this information will allow you to plan and schedule your busy days during the replacement time.
Next, if you happen to have windows leaking when it rains, this likely isn’t something for the insurance company. Consequently, you will need to replace the seals around the windows so that the window will no longer leak. Hire a contractor or catch up on the do-it-yourself instructions to accomplish this project.
Lastly, depending on where you live can determine if you have a nuisance of stickers in your yard. Before you go and work to replace your windows, you will want to get rid of any prickly and annoying stickers in your yard. Carrying around windows and standing in the yard during replacement will not be fun if you are constantly getting pricked by stickers.
When Do I Call A Professional?
When it comes to insurance companies, it is important to understand what your homeowners’ policy is. Knowing what your insurance policy covers in cases of damaged items is key. Call on your local home inspection team to pair up with the insurance company adjuster. Together they can create a plan and support any claims that are needed for the insurance company to replace any damaged windows.
Conclusion
Dealing with the insurance company is not always a pleasant task. It is important to note that you should be aware of the language in your contract with the insurance company. This can save you time and money while you are working on a solution to your damaged windows. Consequently, reach out to your local home inspection team. They can inspect all of your windows and provide you with a written report for your insurance company. This report can support any claims in favor of the insurance company covering the cost of the damaged windows. Reach out to ACE Preferred Inspections for a full home inspection in the low country of South Carolina.
