Home Insurance: Once You've Got It, Should You Forget About It?

Most of us get our home insurance when we buy our house. It often becomes part of the monthly mortgage payment and is easy to forget about. However, it's a good idea to think about your home insurance from time to time. Here's why.

Your coverage needs may have changed. There are lots of things that can happen to change your home insurance coverage needs. One of the most obvious is major remodeling. If you've redone your kitchen, added a room or built an outside structure such as a workshop you may not have enough coverage under your current policy.

Also, if you've made any major purchases such as a computer system, or received any gifts such as jewelry, you may need to get a floater or endorsement for those extra items. This will make sure they are covered by insurance in case of a loss.

Life events may have also changed the coverages you need. For example if someone has moved in or out of your home, they'll probably have personal items that will need to be covered by the home insurance policy, or in the case of moving out, no longer need to be covered.

You may now qualify for discounts. If you've added burglar and fire alarms, updated electrical and plumbing and done other improvements that make your home safer, you may qualify for a discount.

Your home insurance company may have made some changes. It's easy to overlook the details in the policy declarations that your home insurance company sends you at renewal. They may have made some changes that could affect your coverages or even your rate. Make sure to read your policy declarations carefully.

The bottom line is that you should not just forget about your home insurance once you've taken out the policy. You should review your policy at least every year -- when you get your renewal documentation is a good time -- and contact your insurance company with questions.

If you feel that you are not getting the best service or value from your home insurance, you should do some comparison shopping. When you comparison shop, compare coverages, premium and consider the service records of the companies. It's a good idea to get at least three quotes when comparison shopping.

Scott Lunt is a freelance writer with over 15 years experience writing insurance-related articles. You can compare home insurance quotes and find more tips on saving on car, home, life, health and long-term care insurance at LowerYourInsurance.com.