Homeowner’s insurance will usually cover situations where someone else is injured on your property, whether they were just walking by or if they were a guest in your home. However, there are usually a few exceptions that you should be aware of and your policy may contain additional exclusions as well. If your insurance company is telling you what an exception or exclusion applies, it may be a good idea to talk with a Boston injury attorney to determine your options.
General Liability Coverage
Most injuries that occur on your property will fall under general liability coverage. This type of coverage will usually address most of the common damages that someone experiences after an injury. These include:
- Medical bills
- Lost income
- Pain and suffering
- Long-term damage
Compensation will be available to the injured person up to the value of your policy. Anything above the policy limits will likely be your personal responsibility. However, most policy limits are set up so that they only come into play in very serious injuries.
Generally speaking, homeowner’s insurance does not cover you or your family for injuries that happen in the home. Instead, this type of insurance is designed to cover outside individuals like friends and neighbors. If the person who is injured is related to you in any way, you may not have coverage.
Types of Situations that Your Homeowner’s Insurance Will Likely Cover
Most homeowner’s insurance policies will cover injuries as well as property damage. For example, if your tree falls on a neighbor’s car, your homeowner’s insurance will likely cover the damage to the car. The injury does not technically have to occur on your property for it to be covered.
Your homeowner’s insurance will also likely cover slip and fall accidents, dog bite incidents, accidents involving your property (trampoline, children playing in your yard, etc.), and situations where property coming from your home injures another person (baseballs, trees, etc.). Coverage under homeowner’s insurance is actually very expensive, so it is an important type of coverage to have.
Exceptions to Homeowner’s Insurance Polices
Homeowner’s insurance will not cover every situation. Policies often contain certain limitations or exclusions, and they will sometimes vary by plan. You should take a close look at your insurance documents to understand which situations may or may not be covered.
In some situations, it may be a good idea to add a personal injury endorsement to extend coverage to cases like wrongful eviction or entry, invasion, violation of privacy, slander, and defamation, and even false arrest. Most standard insurance policies do not cover these situations without the additional rider.
Homeowner’s insurance will also usually not cover business-related accidents. For someone that runs a business out of their home, this can be a problem. Situations involving automobiles are also often more appropriate for your auto insurance coverage.
Homeowner’s insurance also does not extend to intentional acts. That means that if you intentionally hurt someone that is in your home or a neighbor, homeowner’s insurance will not help you with the liability associated with that harm.
A Boston injury lawyer can help you with a claim that might involve your homeowner’s insurance. Contact Jim Glaser Law today at 781-689-2277 or fill out our online form to request a free case evaluation.
