Earthquakes and Volcanic Eruptions: Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Extraordinary Events?

Earthquakes. Volcanic eruptions. Massive sinkholes on your property. While some scenarios are less likely than others, extraordinary events such as these could wreak havoc and cause massive damage to your home. People with homeowners insurance may think their coverage will help offset the costs from the destruction of these natural events, but this may not always be the case. In this blog, we’re looking at whether homeowners insurance covers rare, out-of-the-ordinary events and how we can help you obtain a policy that gives you peace of mind.

Disaster Coverage

Not every homeowners insurance policy is created equal—coverage differs from one house to another depending on the specific needs of the policyholder. However, there is a standard homeowners insurance policy, known as an HO-1, that often covers the most basic potential perils, such as damage caused by fire, windstorms or hail (but not damage from falling objects like trees). These policies are becoming less common due to their lack of coverage, and some mortgage companies won’t even accept them as proof of insurance.

The most common type of homeowners insurance is an HO-3 policy, as it covers homes for all destructive events except for those that are specifically excluded, which are usually sinkholes, flood damage and earthquakes, to name a few. Interestingly, this type of policy usually does protect a home from the damage caused by a volcanic eruption, and even falling debris such as a tree or even a meteor. But given that volcanic activity isn’t possible on the United States’ east coast, you don’t have much to worry about when it comes to lava damage, anyway.

If you want to obtain coverage for perils not included in your standard policy, you can for an added cost. These optional avenues of coverage are called endorsements, and they add to the list of perils covered by your insurance, meaning you can get coverage for any of these extraordinary events.

Dowd Can Help

Are you trying to buy homeowners insurance, but feel overwhelmed by all its complexities? Are you looking to add extra coverage to your home to hedge against the possibility of a disaster like a flood or an earthquake? If so, our experienced team of insurance experts is ready to help make the process easy for you. We offer homeowners and condo insurance, and can even assist you in adding personal umbrella coverage so you can protect expensive items like jewelry or fine art. Reach out to us online today to get started.