What is Broad Personal Property Insurance?

Well, life has undoubtedly changed. Harvard Western Insurance understands, and that’s why we provide you with an easy solution to get your home insurance online. Our system delivers more than just a home insurance online quote. It is easy, user-friendly, and allows you to compare products from competitors and buy your insurance, all from the comfort of your home 24/7. Harvard Western Insurance is your Regina home insurance broker. Although we provide you with the ease of purchasing your policy from the comfort of your home, we have friendly local advisors ready to assist you with any of your questions. We often get one question: what is the difference between broad-form property insurance coverage and comprehensive insurance coverage?

Simply put, a broad form insurance policy provides comprehensive perils on the dwelling & outbuildings and named perils on the belongings. A comprehensive policy provides you with comprehensive risks on the home, outbuildings, and belongings. That won’t help you much unless you understand comprehensive and named perils. 

Broad (Named perils) vs Comprehensive Perils

Perils describe the event that contributes to the property’s loss or damage.

Comprehensive perils mean just what the name implies; it’s comprehensive. The Comprehensive coverage wording describes exclusions rather than naming the following coverages.

Broad Form (named perils) are different in policy wordings, which detail the covered risks.

Now keep in mind that certain common types of property and causes of loss are not covered under both coverages. Examples include loss or damage caused by settling, expansion, earth movement, faulty design, and quality. Loss or damage caused by these is not considered a loss by a sudden or unexpected event, which is covered.

Broad Form

The named perils which cover your belongings under a broad form property insurance policy are: 

• Fire or lightning 
• Explosion or implosion 
• Smoke means sudden and unusual failure of a cooking or heating unit on the premises and includes things such as a furnace, stove or fireplace. 
• Falling objects; an example of this is a prominent light fixture that detaches accidentally and suddenly from the ceiling causing damage to the table, chairs, and flooring beneath it. 
• Impact by aircraft, spacecraft, or land vehicle 
• Riot, vandalism, or malicious acts. However, loss caused by attempted theft, vacant or under construction dwelling, damage caused by you or anyone living in your household, or caused by tenants or their guests renting any part of your property is not covered
• Water escapes and ruptures. If you’re away from your premises for more than ten consecutive days during the typical heating season, you must either:
  a) shut off the water supply and drain all pipes, fixtures, and appliances
  b) arrange to have a reliable person check your heating every day
  c) have your dwelling electronically monitored 24 hours a day by a company that monitors and responds to a low-temperature signal 

If your dwelling becomes vacant at any period for any length of time, contact your broker to discuss strategies to minimize risk. Doing so will help ensure you comply with the conditions in your insurance policy.

You can extend the name perils policy to include glass breakage, theft, damage caused by attempted robbery, and transportation if the transporting vehicle is in an accident causing damage to your belongings. So you do have options to make the policy suit your own needs.

Comprehensive Perils

Broad-form property cover provides comprehensive perils on your dwelling and outbuildings. As noted earlier, comprehensive perils wordings define their exclusions. Exclusion refers to hazards, circumstances, or property not covered by the policy. Here are the exclusions under a comprehensive policy for which you will not have coverage under a broad property insurance policy.

Exclusions:

• The seepage of groundwater that exerts pressure seeps or leaks through any opening is not insurable. There is an exception to this exclusion; there is coverage if the damage caused is sudden and accidental, such as escaping water from a water main, fire hydrant, or swimming pool.
• Damage caused by flood, surface water, overflow of streams or bodies of water, waterborne ice, whether driven by wind or not, unless sudden or accidental. A broker can add water protection coverage to your insurance policy to cover flood, surface water, the sudden and accidental entrance of groundwater, and sewer backup.
• Water damage to the dwelling, unless an act of nature created an opening suddenly and accidentally through which the water enters. For example, a windstorm breaking a window and allowing driving rain to enter is sudden and accidental.
• Rupture of pipes caused by freezing hot tubs, swimming pools, or plumbing fixtures, not any heated building during the typical heating season. 
• Suppose you are away from your premises for more than ten consecutive days during the typical heating season. In that case, there is no coverage for damage caused by freezing and the resulting water escape from plumbing, heating, fire sprinkler, air conditioning systems, or appliances. So again, make sure someone is checking on your property.
• If the dwelling is vacant for more than 30 days or under construction, waterscape and accidental bursting, tearing, cracking, or bulging due to pressure in a plumbing or similar fixture. 
• Damage is caused by the dampness of the atmosphere, temperature extremes, condensation, rot, mold inherent vice. There is an exclusion for continuously repeated water leakage from a plumbing or similar fixture. 
• Mechanical breakdown of appliances, but you can purchase it through optional home systems protection coverage.
• Theft or attempted theft by renters, anyone living in your household, or while your dwelling is under construction.
• Wear and tear, rust, corrosion, or deterioration are not covered.
• Vermin is an exclusion, including rodents, insects, and domesticated animals.
• Marring or scratching any property or breaking fragile or brittle articles.
• Glass breakage while your dwelling is under construction.
• Retaining walls not constituting part of the building are not covered.
• Smoke from agricultural industrial operations is an exclusion from coverage.
• Damage to sporting equipment, due to its use of it.
• Contact lenses, unless caused by a named peril.

To thoroughly review exclusions, we highly recommend checking your wording booklet specific to your policy, as sometimes there can be variances depending on your insurer.

Whew, that’s a lot of information! We hope you found it helpful. If you have any questions about coverage or exclusions, we’re happy to help! 

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