Home Protection Policy in California? Does it Cover Appliances?
It may sound like a yes or no question, but unfortunately there’s no clear answer that covers every situation when it comes to what appliances home insurance will cover. This is one good reason many homeowners also choose to invest in a home warranty plan to cover the many scenarios where typical homeowners insurance falls short and leaves homeowners paying out of pocket for costly home appliance repairs.
Homeowners Insurance vs Home Warranty
Homeowners insurance typically only covers appliances in your home if they are damaged or stolen as a result of a disaster, fire, or burglary. A home warranty is intended to cover things like large appliances, heating and air conditioning systems, and other major home components like electrical and mechanical systems which require repairs or replacement from problems NOT caused by a disaster.
Covered Scenarios
Home appliances such as your oven or refrigerator are generally covered under most homeowner’s insurance policies in the event that they are damaged or destroyed as a result of certain specific disasters. If a fire broke out in your home and destroyed the kitchen, your oven and your refrigerator would probably be covered by your homeowner’s insurance policy, although the amount of appliance coverage would be pro-rated considering the age of the appliances.
There are some scenarios where your home appliances would be covered under a typical homeowner’s insurance policy. For instance, lightning strikes, fires, theft, wind damage, hail, and several other similar situations are generally provided for under a homeowner’s policy. However, it should be noted that even when coverage does apply, any specific policy will probably have a deductible associated with it, and that would be an amount which you pay out of pocket before coverage kicks in.
Most homeowner’s insurance policies also include a limit on the amount that would be paid to cover the cost of a destroyed appliance. What this means is that after you’ve had an appliance ruined, you will have to pay for part of the cost yourself, and the amount covered by insurance will fall short of the true market value of the appliance.
Home Warranty Appliance Coverage – California, Arizona and Nevada
If it sounds like a homeowners insurance policy generally doesn’t cover aging appliances, that’s because it really doesn’t. If you want to have some assurance that the cost of replacing a worn out appliance can be at least partially covered, you’ll need to purchase a home warranty. A home appliance warranty in California, Arizona and Nevada is much different than a homeowner’s Insurance policy, because home warranties are specifically designed to protect against appliance breakdowns which occur as a result of normal wear and tear.
As long as your appliances are in good operating order when you obtain your home warranty, you can count on coverage in the event of a breakdown, even if it’s due to old age. Home warranties can also be customized to obtain specific coverage on appliances in your home, so whenever a breakdown occurs, you won’t be left without recourse.
When your appliances are not covered
Even the best home warranty plan would probably not cover situations where your appliances fail because of abuse and secondary damage. As elsewhere throughout the country, a good home warranty policy in California, Arizona and Nevada would also not cover damage done to your appliances through accidental causes.
For instance, if a child were to store some plastic toys in the oven without parents realizing it, and then someone turned the stove on, that would not be a covered scenario. Cosmetic damage which might occur to your appliances is likewise generally not covered, because it doesn’t interfere with functionality.
If you have any questions about how a home warranty or protection plan works, give us a call at 1-866-993-2301 or send us a note at order@hghw.com.
