About
Brandon Homeowners Insurance

Buying a home is a big investment for you and your family, and therefore you want to make sure that it is protected. Despite what neighborhood your address is written, Brandon homeowners insurance is completely vital for you. The larger your house is, the higher the value you risk to lose in unforeseen circumstances. For that reason, it is essential to have a policy that protects your property, yourself, your family and friends visiting when an unexpected incident occurs. With the standard Brandon homeowners insurance, you will be provided protection in four different areas including personal belongings, liability, home structure and additional living expenses. On this page, you will find the facts you need to know about coverage for each area.

Personal property Protection

Personal property protection covers your personal belongings inside of your home including clothes, furniture, electronics and more that are damaged as a result of any of the misfortunes that you have listed under your dwellings coverage on your policy.  With your Brandon homeowners insurance, personal property coverage is covering your belongings even if you take them around the world or keep them in storage off of the premise of your own property. In most cases, 50-70% of your personal belongings will be covered. However, in order to get a more exact coverage make sure to frequently update the inventory of your belongings. 

For your more expensive belongings, coverage is limited and for that reason, you may want to consider purchasing a floater or special endorsement to insure the value of these items fully. Watercrafts might also be covered under special endorsements at times depending on the make and model. In addition, your natural landscaping items such as shrubs, trees, and large plants are only covered in instances of natural disasters. 

Dwelling Coverage

This part of your Brandon homeowners insurance will protect your house’s structure and the effort of rebuilding or repairing your home if damaged. The damages that are covered in this policy include: 

• Vandalism and theft
• Severe weather, like hurricanes
• Falling objects
• Fire or smoke
• Damage from motor vehicles
• Damage from aircrafts

These dwelling coverage limits are not based on the value of the home, but rather the estimated cost to rebuild it. As labor and material costs rise and fall over time making rebuilding more or less expensive, this figure changes frequently. For that reason, If you ever update any part of your house that might also affect the rebuild costs, so please keep your carrier informed on any additions such as decks or sunrooms, or upgrading any part of the home like the kitchen or bathrooms. We always recommend playing it safe by frequently reviewing your coverage and ensuring that it is sufficient. With our Brandon homeowners insurance, your dwelling coverage also extends to your porch and garage. 

Keep in mind that standard policies often do not cover damages from earthquakes, floods, storm surges from hurricanes/tropical storms, nor the routine wear and tear that all houses experience. With that said, we recommend that you pair your Brandon homeowners insurance with an additional flood insurance policy.

Liability

No one wants accidents on their property, but unfortunately, many incidents cannot be prevented. When the unwished happens, the liability portion of your Brandon homeowners insurance policy will protect you, your family and even your pets if they’ve caused bodily harm or property damage to others. There are various costs associated with such an incident and the following are covered under your policy:

• Medical bills for injured persons
• The pain and suffering endured by that injured person
• Legal defense/court costs
• Loss in wages
• Death benefits

Usually, liability limits are set at $100,000, so it is recommended to purchase an additional umbrella policy or an excess liability policy if you have considerable assets so that you have higher liability limits and broader coverage in general.

Additional living expenses/loss of use

This part of your Brandon homeowners insurance policy enables you to be paid for any potential additional cost of living elsewhere in an instance of your home being damaged due to a covered accident to the extent that it is unlivable. The coverage would then step in and help the costs that exceed your usual expenses for a limited period of time. Normally, it’s based on 20-30 percent of the dwelling coverage. But remember to choose a coverage that fits your lifestyle with the time limits in mind.  

Other types of coverage 

In Florida, another addition to your Brandon homeowners insurance policy that is essential is National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policies. To best protect yourself, the dwelling and its contents, you should most likely purchase separate flood policies.

We often see homeowners have problems with water backups from drains, sewers and sump pumps that give them a good reason to add coverage. We also see people considering “green home coverage” because it provides more protection for their systems. Luckily, some Brandon homeowners insurance policies now also include fraud recovery expenses in their package.