Home Insurance

A wind storm tore vinyl siding off the south wall of a couple's Indianapolis home. The insurer authorized one wall. Their color had been discontinued. Indiana's matching law turned a $4,800 partial repair into a $19,200 full replacement.

A Charlotte couple kept the homeowners policy on their old house after renting it to a family friend. Ten months later a kitchen fire caused $87,000 in damage and the insurer walked away.

Sandra had $340,000 in homeowners coverage and three feet of water in her living room. Her insurer paid zero. The standard homeowners policy excludes flooding entirely, and most homeowners don't find out until after the loss.

Carmen Ortiz expected to pay her $2,500 homeowner deductible on a $58,000 hail roof claim. Her policy carried a 2% wind and hail deductible on her $420,000 dwelling limit, so her out-of-pocket was $8,400. Percentage deductibles for wind and hail are a separate line most homeowners never read.

A burglary cleaned out $9,200 in jewelry from Lauren Castillo's bedroom dresser. Her $250,000 homeowners policy paid only $1,500 because of a sublimit she had never read.

A windstorm hit her condo building's roof, and the association's board legally passed the master policy's deductible straight to the owners. Here's why her insurance barely covered it.

Marcus discovered black mold spreading across his basement drywall after a slow pipe leak. His remediation estimate was $18,400. His insurer paid $5,000.

A daughter settling her late father's estate left his house empty for four months. A burst pipe caused $42,000 in damage, and the vacancy clause voided the entire claim.

Homeowners policies cover sudden, accidental water damage but exclude gradual seepage that builds over time. The difference decides whether your claim is paid, and an adjuster can read the age of a leak in the walls.

When a replacement cost policy pays a claim, the first check is short by the depreciation amount. That holdback is recoverable, but only if you finish the repair and send the final invoice. Most homeowners leave it on the table.