texas home owner insurance

Texas Home Owner Insurance

Under Texas home owner insurance laws, you can buy a dwelling policy that covers only the structure of your house. Or, like most Texans who own their homes, you can buy a homeowners policy, which combines five different types of Texas home owner insurance coverage:

• Dwelling - pays for damage to your house and any outbuildings, such as detached garages and storage sheds.
  


• Personal property - pays when household items, including furniture, clothing and appliances, are damaged, stolen, or destroyed.
  


• Liability - protects you against financial loss if you are found legally responsible for someone else?s injury or property damage. A homeowners policy automatically provides $25,000 in coverage. You can buy up to $1 million in coverage for an extra premium.
  


• Medical payments - pays medical bills for people hurt while on your property. It also pays for some injuries that happen away from your home, such as your dog biting someone. A basic homeowners policy pays $500 in medical bills. You can pay extra and get up to $5,000 in medical payments coverage.
  


• Loss of use - pays living expenses if your home is too damaged to live in during repairs. The most common policy pays up to 20 percent of the amount for which your house is insured.

Companies can sell several types of policies in Texas, each with a different level of coverage.

• HO-A policies provide extremely limited actual cash value coverage of your home and its contents. Only the types of damage specifically listed in the policy are covered.
  


• HO-A amended policies provide more extensive coverage than the base HO-A policy but less coverage than an HO-B.
  


• HO-B policies provide replacement cost coverage for most types of damage, except those specifically excluded in the policy.
  


• HO-C policies provide the most extensive coverage, but are more expensive than other types of policies.
  


• National policies are policies of national insurance organizations or large national companies that the Commissioner of Insurance has approved for sale in Texas. Coverage provided by these policies may differ considerably from one another and from the coverage provided in standard Texas home owners policies.

Generally, HO-B policies provide the most coverage for the price, but some companies may not offer the HO-B policy.

If you live in an apartment, you will need to purchase apartment insurance to protect your belongings. Shop for Texas apartment insurance quotes on the web, or with an insurer or broker you trust.

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