Home Insurance Riders Explained

Home insurance or homeowners insurance, whatever you like to call it, is a type of general insurance that shields your home and its contents (yes, you as well) against unfortunate and unpredictable events of loss and damage.

To expand your knowledge and awareness with respect to home insurance, we’ll discuss the ‘home insurance riders’ which are essentially those additional coverage benefits you can get on paying a nominal sum over and above the policy premium.

To begin with here’s the definition of a ‘Rider’

A rider is basically an add-on to your standard insurance policy that enhances the coverage of your policy. In short, you get additional benefits on a standard policy at an additional cost. Most standard policies come with room for customization in the form of insurance riders.

Why opt for a rider when there’s enough in the standard policy?

Many policyholders fail to take advantage of the insurance riders, either due to an intention to save on policy premium or because they are not well aware of the significance of these insurance riders.

Most of us have a lot of faith in standard policies, so much so that we forget to look for the extra benefits we can get by paying a little extra. This is not to say that a standard policy does not provide protection, it definitely does, but sometimes customizations can help cater to your requirements in a better way.

Now that you’ve got an idea about an insurance rider and its usefulness, let’s go ahead and talk about home insurance.

While standard home insurance policy provides adequate coverage for your house and everything you have in your house, adding home insurance riders can make it even more comprehensive in coverage.

Usually, every home insurance policy benefit comes with a cap or limit on the claim you make. That means if your high-value house contents like electronic items get damaged or stolen, you might not get the full cost!

Here are some home insurance riders that can broaden your policy coverage, and should be a part of your home insurance policy -

1. Personal Property rider

Your home has a number of things in it, some costly enough to need individual protection. These may include jewelry, collectibles, antiques, firearms, fine art, etc. A standard home insurance policy might have a cap on the amount but if you buy an add-on, your coverage increases.

2. Personal Accident rider

This coverage protects the policyholder and the members of the house (named in the policy) against disablement or death due to natural calamities like earthquakes, floods, landslides, etc., man-made perils like burglary or theft, and allied perils like fire or shock, within the premises of the property.

3. Living Expenses rider

If due to damage you are unable to stay in your house, then some insurers also provide you with additional coverage for living expenses or temporary housing.

4. Theft Cover rider

The coverage offered for theft of personal property might be limited. You can buy a home insurance rider to increase coverage for losses caused by theft.

Some insurance providers even allow you to increase the sum assured of your home insurance policy by payment of additional premiums.

So before you buy home insurance, assess your needs completely so that your cover doesn’t fall short of what you need. 

**To understand exactly about the policy coverage, exclusions etc. read the Policy Wordings carefully.**