TRI-CITIES, Wash. —
Wildfire is here and maybe you’re considering buying your first home. Well, there’s a couple things you need to know about your home insurance.
For example, Washington state requires all homeowners and renters to have fire insurance. However, the coverage on your insurance policy changes depending on how far or close you are to emergency services.
Dakota Renz from Renz Farmers Insurance in Prosser tells me the cost of your insurance is based on what’s called a brush fire score. The score varies, and for people living on Red Mountain and the Horse Heaven Hills, that means making sure your entire property is insured.
He encourages people to make sure everything of value is insured – cars, boats, mobile homes, etc.
“Anything with wheels or an engine should have its own policy. should a fire happen, a tree falls on it something like that and it’s actually not the case.” says Dakota.
Not only should you have your cars, boats and more insured separately from your home but you should also consider the cost of construction, should you lose them.
“Make sure your home is insured for the reconstructive costs of that home and your personal property inside of that structure or anything outside the structure as well.” Dakota says. “Also take a look at your deductibles.”
Looking at your deductibles helps you know what your coverage actually looks like. However, there’s many other natural disasters you should consider when buying a home.
Dakota says, looking into the area you’re living in and taking note of what happens in the area helps with your potential coverages.
With the recent fires in the nearby mountains and thunderstorms, the areas are more prone to flash floods, so that may be something else you want to protect your home and property against.
Worst case scenario? “I had a client who had a river running through his house and that’s not covered under homeowners insurance.” says Dakota.
A couple tips to take into consideration, make sure you are always looking at your declaration paperwork after buying your policy.
The declaration paperwork shows you the details of your coverage plan, the premium and what you are/want to be covered for.
After a tough year, Dakota says insurance agencies aren’t in the best position at the moment and some agencies aren’t having renewals meanwhile others are doubling their pricing.
Alice J. Roden started working for Trending Insurance News at the end of 2021. Alice grew up in Salt Lake City, UT. A writer with a vast insurance industry background Alice has help with several of the biggest insurance companies. Before joining Trending Insurance News, Alice briefly worked as a freelance journalist for several radio stations. She covers home, renters and other property insurance stories.