What You Need To Know About Your Property Insurance

By Joyce Baluya

Insurance is a unique product in the sense that you buy it without intentionally putting it to use. You don’t buy auto insurance with the intention of getting into an accident or home insurance with the intention of putting a damage claim. This statement is very true unless you intend to commit fraud. With insurance, you are practically buying peace of mind that in the event of a loss, you won’t be left in financial ruin. Working for the largest property and casualty insurance company in Canada for the past nine years instilled in me a deep sense of awareness of the importance of having the right insurance in place to protect yourself, your loved ones and your investments. There is much more to insurance than the average person is aware of. Other than putting you back to your financial state just as before the loss, insurance is vital for your protection if you or your family member causes damage or injury to someone else due to negligence. If you are proven negligent, you could be facing an enormous stress without insurance to pay for the damages. A lot of people are not aware that their homeowner’s policy covers personal liability. In case your 15-year-old son decides to shoot hockey pucks in the back alley and causes damage to your neighbour’s garage, your neighbour’s insurance company may go after you (your son being a minor) to recoup the damages paid for repairs. In the insurance world, we call that subrogation rights. Insurance companies have the right to pursue damage recovery from the negligent party that caused the damage after taking care of their insured’s losses. Another example is when your dog Scooby decides to scare and bite your neighbour’s annoying teenager, your liability coverage under your homeowner’s policy will respond to the injuries caused by your dog if your neighbour decides to sue you.

I tell everyone I know who is renting a house or an apartment to make sure they get tenant’s insurance for the purpose of having liability coverage. If you are a tenant, and you (or again you minor kid) caused a fire due to unattended cooking or improper cigarette disposal, you could face financial ruin if you are proven negligent and have no liability coverage to pay for the damages. Insurance is not only useful for your damages but also to damages or accidental injury you may cause others.

A lot of people have the wrong notion that insurance pays for everything. You should know that like any other product you buy, you get what you pay for so make sure you know what your policy covers and which portion of the loss is your responsibility. It is also important to understand the conditions of your policy as failing to meet those requirements may be grounds for claim denial. Your broker will be most helpful in guiding you in this regard. Important things to check under your homeowner’s policy are 1) do you have sewer backup coverage? 2) do you have sufficient coverage for valuable personal articles? 3) does your policy pay replacement cost or actual cash value?

Lastly, I want to share the importance of making sure that proper precautions are taken if you will be away from your home for more than four days. A lot of Filipinos go away on holidays to spend Christmas with friends and relatives back in the Philippines. It is important to be aware that there is NO coverage for water escaping from frozen pipes that have ruptured UNLESS one of the following precautions have been taken: arrange for someone to check on your house each day to make sure heating is maintained OR shut off the water supply and drain all the pipes and domestic water containers.

Other helpful tips to protect your homes:

• It is suggested to keep a temperature not lower than 16 degrees if you are going away for an extended period during the regular heating season.
• Make sure to check your smoke alarm and change batteries at least twice a year. A good time to do that is when you change your clocks twice a year as daylight savings time begins and end.
• Washing machine supply hoses can become brittle over time and burst. Check them periodically and replace your old hoses with newer types that consist of flexible plastic tubing encased in a stainless steel braided interior.
• If your water heater is more than ten years old, leaks around the base of the tank, and works erratically or not at all, it’s probably time for replacement as the normal life span of a hot water tank is approximately 8 to 10 years.
• And lastly, if you need to have some plumbing or electrical work done around the house, make sure to hire a competent person to do the task. You will probably pay a little more, but you will save yourself from unnecessary stress and trouble in the long run.

Joyce Baluya is a mom to 2 wonderful girls, a happy wife, an active volunteer worker for the River of Life Alliance Church and a committee member of the FCT Calgary. An Industrial Engineer by education and experience back in the Philippines who reinvented herself as a property and casualty claims professional in Canada. My passion lies in serving the church and community as an expression of gratitude for the “amazing grace” received from on high. It is my desire to make a positive impact on the lives of my family and friends and to inspire them to rise above any challenge they may face and embrace life to its fullest.
“I believe the single most significant decision I can make on a day-to-day basis is my choice of attitude. It is more important than my past, my education, my bankroll, my successes or failures, fame or pain, what other people think of me or say about me, my circumstances, or my opinion.” by Charles R. Swindoll