Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Mold Damage?

10/8/2020 (Permalink)

Homeowners insurance can protect your residential property from a lot of different disasters and types of damage

Is Your Home Protected Against Mold Damage?

Homeowners insurance can protect your residential property from a lot of different disasters and types of damage. Despite how common residential fungus growth is, many insurance policies still don't cover mold damage directly. Read on to see whether your home in West Dundee, IL, is protected against mold damage.

When You Are Covered
The majority of insurance policies cover mold damage if, and only if, the damage was caused by what's known as a "covered peril." A covered peril is essentially any type of disaster or damage that the insurance policy already covers. Here are a few examples:

• Lightning strikes
• Fire damage
• Theft
• Malicious mischief, or other types of vandalism
• Damage caused by vehicles
• Frozen pipes
• Falling objects
  

Each insurance policy is different, so it's likely that yours might include accidents that are not listed above. It's important to check your insurance policy just to make sure. If the fungus growth is a direct result of any covered perils in your policy, then you're covered. However, if the mold is a result of your personal carelessness, or if you leave it unreported for too long, then you're on your own when it comes to paying for the damage.

When You Aren't Covered
There are a few loopholes you can employ if your specific policy doesn't cover mold damage. If you want to be absolutely safe, you always have the option to purchase a separate mold insurance policy. This is a separate policy endorsement that adds mold coverage to your existing homeowners insurance policy. Depending on your home's specific mold risk -- this is determined by where you live, how often you typically deal with mold damage and other various factors -- you may end up paying between $500 and $1,500 annually for separate mold coverage.
Fungus growth is a very common occurrence that the majority of homeowners do have to handle at some point. It may be beneficial to purchase a separate policy endorsement to make sure that your property is covered, just in case your existing policy is reluctant to protect you. If you do discover mold damage in your home, you should contact mold remediation experts immediately.