Updating your California home insurance every 3 years or so is a good idea. The value of your home might have increased or you may have new furnishings that might exceed your personal property coverage. Either way it is a good idea to take a close look at your policy and be certain that you have the right coverage amounts in all categories. Taking a close look at your policy now is a better course of action then waiting to find out you may have insufficient coverage after an incident occurs.

Insufficient Coverage

If you bought you home more then a few years ago it is a good ideal to check your California home insurance coverage limits. Policies do have a built in appreciation and so as the value of your home increases your coverage limit increases as well. But maybe there are some circumstances like building a deck or remodeling that has taken place. In both cases the amount of coverage in place may not be sufficient if your home is destroyed. Unless you informed the insurance company of the change in your home’s value there is simply no way for them to know circumstances have changed. Taking a look at the policy and calling your agent can inform them that present coverage limits may be insufficient. If the coverage limits are too low then you can take steps to increase the coverage in proportion to you new situation.

California home insurance companies have a model that they use to determine replacement value of homes year to year. The model takes into account rising home values and the increase in labor throughout the construction industry. But this is no guarantee that your coverage is correct for your situation. The circumstances that might fall outside the norm values might not be incorporated into the insurance company model. This could leave you with insufficient coverage limits. To safeguard your home against the possibility of losses requires that you take a close look at your policy periodically because the coverage you bought ten years ago may not provide the sufficient amount of coverage to replace your home and your possessions should they be destroyed, damaged or stolen.

Request a Review

To pay for insufficient coverage on a California home insurance policy is a waste of money and you should take the steps necessary to make sure that you are getting your money’s worth. If an incident should occur and your coverage amount is not sufficient to cover the repair or replacement of your home or possessions you will have to make up the rest out of pocket. There is no sense to this unless you are willing to assume this liability. Adjusting your policy won’t cost a significant amount of money anyways and it is much more cost effective to let the insurance company take on the liability instead of you taking it on. If you suspect the policy may be out of day then you should call the company and request an insurance review.

During a California home insurance review you can sit down with your agent or communicate with the company by phone. The process will start with a series of questions to establish what you coverage needs are presently. This is based on your home’s value, amount of personal possessions and any other aspects that may need increased amounts of coverage. Either way your insurance bill is not going to increase by that much if you are under insured. But it certainly would be nice to be able to rest at night knowing you have adequate coverage in place to protect your home and possessions should something happen.

Carrying Too Much California Home Insurance

One of the good things that can come as a result of a policy review is discovering that you are carrying too high limits and paying too much for your California home insurance. Perhaps those snowmobiles or all terrain vehicles that you sold were never taken off the policy and so you were paying extra each month to cover them. Now that you don’t own them any longer they can be removed from the policy and a lower rate adjusted. If you replaced your furnace or upgraded your security system these too could result in discounts and lower monthly rates as well. But if you don’t do a policy review you will never know if are paying too much each month.

Another factor that could affect the amount of your California home insurance is if the market in you area changes. If labor charges, material costs or home values drop then the amount of replacement coverage will drop also. This means a lower monthly policy payment. Of course this may not all be good news but it doesn’t make much sense to pay more for coverage when you don’t have to. A policy review can give you the facts straight up and you can make informed decisions and wise money choices based on reality. Fact is that things in your life or in your area could have changed over the last few years and your coverage limits need to change with them.

Compare Rates and Coverage

It is always a good idea to check the rates and coverage of your California home insurance every 5 years or so to be certain your coverage matches your needs. Circumstances in our lives change and insurance coverage should change also to keep up. Sometimes those changes will result in a lower monthly insurance premium and sometimes not. But either way you will have the appropriate coverage to protect you and your family. This is far better then a surprise bill when you find out that your coverage is not adequate and you will have to pay a large portion out of pocket. California home insurance policy rates are reasonable and the amount of security they provide is substantial, especially when they are needed.