Posted on: Nov 18, 2021 | 3 mins | Written by: HDFC ERGO Team

Can You Get Home Insurance After Failing the Inspection?

Home insurance inspection is carried out by a certified representative of an insurance provider. The goal is to find potential red flags in your home’s interior and exterior. This helps the insurance provider understand the amount of coverage your home would need, in case it needs to be built up from the ground. However, in some cases, risk factors within the house can become too much to be insured. In such cases, the inspector will fail the inspection.

Let us understand what happens in case of a homeowners insurance inspection failure.

Why does my homeowners insurance company want to inspect my house?

A homeowners insurance inspection is not like every other home inspection. In this case, it’s not the buyer that initiates the inspection but the insurance provider themselves. There are a number of reasons why such an inspection is carried out before giving home insurance.

The insurance provider wants to ensure that all the information provided by the homeowner is true. The information on the insurance application form is matched with the information observed on the ground.

Every home requires a specific coverage plan. The coverage should be such that if the house gets destroyed to the ground, the insured amount is sufficient to build it up again. Hence, it is important for the insurance provider to assess the safety of your house. Risky aspects such as a leaky roof or water damage will increase the likelihood of a claim in the future. Thus, the amount of coverage required also increases.

A home insurance inspection gives the insurance company a great idea of what your home’s condition actually is like. Hence, this also determines the premium amount you have to pay for the insurance.

What happens if you don’t pass your homeowners insurance inspection?

In most cases, the certified inspector will take note of all things that could pose a risk in the future. This includes the doors, windows, safety measures, roofs, flooring, appliances and everything else within your house. As the risk factors increase, the amount of coverage needs to be increased as well. However, sometimes, the home’s condition might be bad enough for the companies to refuse insurance.

  • Your home can be extremely old and vulnerable.

  • There could be a significant amount of missing shingles on your roof. Or your roof could have huge cracks.

  • If your home has a foundational defect, that is a huge red flag for the company which might lead to one failing the inspection.

  • Extreme water damage in the walls can also prove to be a deciding factor for your home insurance inspection

In such extreme cases, the inspector will not pass your home in a homeowners insurance inspection. Thus, you will not be eligible for a home insurance plan from that company.

How to get homeowners insurance after a failed inspection?

A failed home insurance inspection doesn’t mean that there is no hope for home insurance ever. There are many companies that are willing to offer high-risk home insurance plans with a little higher premium. You can also spend a few thousand rupees to get some things fixed within the house so that you have an easier time getting home insurance for your house.

How to prepare for a homeowners insurance inspection?

In order to avoid a home insurance inspection failure, you can take some steps beforehand.

  • Examine your roof. If it has cracks or holes, get a professional to get them fixed. If your roof has shingles, make sure that there are no missing ones.

  • If your flooring is eroded in places, it might increase the risk of someone getting hurt. Thus, try to fix them as much as possible.

  • Check the drainage of the system inside as well as outside your house. Make sure they don’t clog and work perfectly.

  • Check the sinks and taps in your bathroom and kitchen for water leakage. You can get a plumber to fix any water leakage that might be there.

  • Bubbling in the walls might be a sign of significant water damage. It might be a good idea to contact a professional and find a solution.

  • Check the window glasses for cracks. Get them replaced if required.

  • Make sure the lock on doors and windows are working fine.

Conclusion

A homeowners insurance inspection is carried out to assess the dangers that your house can pose. Hence, it is quite possible that certain aspects of your house might lead to your house not passing the inspection. In that case, don’t worry and look for insurance providers who are ready to take up that risk.

Disclaimer: The above information is for illustrative purposes only. For more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.

Summary: You can fail your home insurance inspection if your house is a high risk one. Faulty foundation, leaky roof, old pillars can be the reason why you fail the inspection. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get homeowners insurance at all!

RELATED ARTICLES:

   
Blog