GREENSBORO, N.C. — ‘Tis the season for turkey fires in the kitchen, your sister's kid dropping toys in your toilet, and thieves finding the gifts you were hiding in your car so your kids can't snoop.
These scenarios happen to people every year. The question is, does your insurance cover it?
“Fire damage is always covered by homeowners. We make mistakes, we're human. Interestingly, your homeowners would also pay for any damage caused to your guests if someone was hurt from that mistake or if your fire spread to another property. Your homeowner's liability portion would pay for that as well,” said Christopher Cook, Alliance Insurance Services.
Will insurance deny your claim saying you should have known not to put the turkey fryer inside the house? Our insurance expert says, no. It's a dumb mistake, but mistakes are covered by insurance.
Kind of like the kid who causes your toilet to overflow, that's covered. But if your toilet leaked for a month and caused your floor to be damaged, that's not covered. Here's why.
“Was this sudden and or accidental? Unfortunately, if the toy is in the toilet and you flush it, the overflow happens immediately. The slow leak that should have been taken care of by routine maintenance is commonly denied,” said Cook.
And last but not least, the Christmas presents you have in your car. If a thief finds them before you can put them under the tree. It's your homeowner's policy that covers it, not your auto policy.
So, renters, this is yet another reason for you to make sure you have renter's insurance. It covers what you own in your apartment and anything stolen from your car.