Holiday disasters happen. Home insurance minimizes the financial damage. Learn what homeowners insurance covers to ensure you are prepared and protected.
Being home for the holidays brings up warm thoughts of spending time with family and friends, buying presents, and decorating with an amazing light display. But sometimes your holiday cheer is ruined by a holiday disaster. According to the insurance experts at Media Benefits Insurance Services,* here are the incidents covered by homeowners insurance.
Fire Damage and Vandalism
Fireplaces, Christmas trees, candles, and outdoor light decorations are the top culprits for fire damage during the holidays. According to the National Fire Protection Association, decorative lights cause 44% of Christmas tree fires, and the top three days for home candle fires occur on New Year’s Day, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve.
Fortunately, standard homeowners policies cover fire damage, including outdoor trees, plants, and shrubs. It’s important that your policy has sufficient limits to ensure it covers the full costs of rebuilding your home and replacing all of your belongings. Often, homeowners don’t detail their belongings and are disappointed when they can’t replace all of their belongings. Using a home inventory app will help you detail your belongings, making filing a claim easier.
Homeowners insurance also covers vandalism, so if you have an elaborate holiday display that gets vandalized, your homeowner’s insurance will cover the cost of the damage.
Stolen Gifts, Packages and Decoration
According to the National Crime Victimization Survey, homes are more likely to be burglarized in November and December than in any other months of the year. So, if your expensive gifts are stolen from under the tree, swiped from your porch, or snatched from your car, your home insurance will cover the cost of replacing the items.
A Guests Gets Injured
Oops, one of your guests slipped on your driveway and broke their arm. Your policy provides no-fault medical coverage to pay the medical bills of someone injured on your property. This coverage is typically limited to $1,000 to $5,000 for minor incidents. If the injury is more extensive, your policy also provides liability coverage to protect you against bodily injury or property damage lawsuits.
Identity Theft, Fraud, and Scam
A case of identity theft or fraud is reported every 22 seconds. Over 5.7 million cases have been reported to the Federal Trade Commission this year. Online shopping, card skimming devices on ATMs, and fake emails and text messages are the leading causes of identity theft, fraud, and scams. Identify theft protection may be included in your policy or available for an additional fee. It does not cover monetary losses but the costs associated with getting your identity back and fixing your credit score.
Renters Are Also Covered
Like homeowners insurance, the standard coverages on a renters insurance policy include loss of personal property, personal liability, and medical payments to others. It also includes loss of use, which pays for short-term living expenses if your rental home is unsuitable to live in, such as in a fire.
Let First Entertainment Help Protect You This Holiday Season
You should review your current policy to make sure you have ample coverage. Media Benefits Insurance Services agents can provide a free insurance review to compare your policy with multiple insurance carriers. Contact any of our agents to get a homeowners insurance quote or a renters insurance quote to find the best options at the best price.
Cynthia Padilla, Insurance Agent, MBIS (Hollywood Branch)
323.845.4489
cpadi@firstent.org
Maria Valdez Okafor, Insurance Agent, MBIS (Hollywood Branch)
323.845.4494
mokaf@firstent.org
Monique Garcia, Insurance Agent, MBIS (Culver City Branch)
323.845.4495 x5146
mgarc@firstent.org
Media Benefits Insurance Services
6735 Forest Lawn Dr., Hollywood, CA 90068
insurance@firstent.org
www.firstent.org
*Insurance services offered through Media Benefits Insurance Services CA Lic#0H99393, a DBA for Media Benefits Corp., which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of First Entertainment Credit Union. This content is for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing professional, financial, medical, or legal advice. You should contact your licensed professional to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem.
Disclosures
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Insurance services offered through Media Benefits Insurance Services CA Lic#0H99393, a DBA for Media Benefits Corp., which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of First Entertainment Credit Union.
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