What Is Personal Property Insurance?

Unexpected events can not only damage your home, but the personal belongings inside your home. Insuring items such as furniture and appliances can save you money and a headache when sudden damage occurs. Although natural disasters and explosions are not able to be predicted, the security of your belongings can be. 

Defining Personal Property Insurance

Personal property insurance is a policy that covers personal belongings, such as furniture and appliances. This form of insurance covers items inside your home. In fact, if damage were to happen anywhere on your property, your belongings would still be covered.

This insurance will help to fix any damaged personal items after unpredicted events such as a fire. It may also help pay to repair certain items, but it depends on the policy you have. In other words, your belongings are covered if they have been destroyed or stolen both inside and outside your property. 

Two Types of Personal Property Policies

There are two policies used to assess the damage of personal property. These include policies with named perils and open perils. 

• Named peril policies directly state what damages are covered. Named perils include lightning strikes, fires or explosions, and vandalism.
• Open peril policies cover any damage not excluded from your policy. This means that if your policy does not cover certain damage, then the open peril policy will not either. Standard open peril policies do not cover the natural settling of your home, earthquakes and floods, or faulty construction.

Determining Personal Property Value

Choosing an effective policy is determined by the number of belongings you own and their value. To determine the value of your belongings, you must evaluate their actual cash value and replacement cost value.

• Actual cash value determines value by taking depreciation into account. If your belongings are damaged, you will be given payment based on the original cost of the object minus what it is worth today. 
• Replacement cost value determines value without looking at depreciation. You will receive the same amount of money that you paid for the item.

There are some exceptions to these rules. Jewelry and instruments are not completely covered by policies; instead, you will be covered up to a certain amount.

Quality Personal Property Insurance Advice

Protecting your personal belongings is incredibly important. At Corkhill Insurance Agency, we want to ensure that you are covered. We offer insurance policies that provide funds if your personal belongings are damaged or destroyed by an unexpected event. To receive your free quote, call us today at 407-898-8891.