Homeowners coverage gap checker

A policy can look complete and still skip the things that hurt most after a loss. The checker turns 16 statements into a short list of questions for your agent. Tick each statement that is true of your policy, and whatever is left unticked is a gap to fix or something to ask about.

How to use it

Put your declarations page and endorsements in front of you, then read each statement and tick it only if you can confirm it from those documents. The page starts with every box empty, so it opens by showing 16 gaps. The panel on the right counts the unticked statements and lists each one with a reason it matters and a link to the tool or guide that helps. "Save on this device" keeps your ticks in this browser only, and "Print" gives you a page to take to your agent. Run it before renewal, and again after a renovation, a new roof, a new pool or a new dog.

What it checks

The 16 statements fall into five groups:

• Rebuilding: dwelling coverage at least equal to your rebuild cost, extended or guaranteed replacement cost, and ordinance or law coverage of at least 10% (more for an older home).
• How claims are paid: the roof covered at replacement cost rather than actual cash value or a payment schedule, and belongings covered at replacement cost.
• Deductibles and perils: your wind, hail or hurricane deductible known in dollars, water backup coverage, a decision on flood and on earthquake, and service line and equipment breakdown coverage or a decision to skip them.
• Limits: valuables scheduled, liability of at least $300,000 with an umbrella if your assets are larger, and loss of use that would last a year or more.
• Housekeeping: home business, short-term rental or roommate disclosed, a home inventory stored away from the house, and every discount asked about.

Say, hypothetically, you tick everything except the roof, flood and valuables statements. The checker reports three gaps and, for each, gives a reason and a link, such as the valuables coverage checker for the jewelry that exceeds the standard theft limit.

What it assumes

The statements are common benchmarks, not rules. The 10% ordinance or law figure matches the additional coverage in the ISO homeowners 3 form (HO 00 03 05 11, published by the Maine Bureau of Insurance), which also settles belongings at actual cash value unless an endorsement says otherwise. The $300,000 liability benchmark is the tool's rule of thumb, though Triple-I reports that most insurers want about that much underneath an umbrella policy. A year of loss of use is a planning figure. Flood and earthquake appear because standard forms leave them out.

Where it stops being right

A tick is a yes or no, and coverage is more than that. A policy can have 10% for ordinance or law and still limit what it pays, and some insurers' forms and state amendatory endorsements differ from the ISO form, so confirm each answer on your own pages. Several statements pass if you decided to go without, so a tick can mean a choice rather than coverage. Every gap counts as one in the total, although a short dwelling limit matters far more than a missed discount.

The checker also leaves out the fit of the form itself (which homeowners policy form fits your home?), whether your deductible suits your savings, your lender's requirements and the insurer's financial strength. Your agent can read the endorsements it cannot. For a method, see your annual homeowners insurance review; for a next step on specific gaps, use the home replacement cost estimator, the How much liability and umbrella coverage do I need? or your declarations page explained, line by line, and see homeowners endorsements worth considering for the add-ons by name.