When Texans are buying home insurance, there are a number of line items that are listed on the Declarations Page. Some of them are more obvious than others around what they do for the homeowner. Building Ordinance is one of those line items that may not be quite so obvious. Here's a quick video of a real life scenario deep in the heart of Texas.
As you can see, a line item that may not have much meaning initially can be crucially important. Here are two ways in which building ordinance can have an impact on the function of your Burleson Home Insurance Policy.
1. Partial Claim That Requires Building Permits
When looking to buy my current home, I was completely enamored with the amount of tree coverage that was provided to the home from the yard. Trees are awesome. Brutal reality of those same trees in Spring Hail storms is that they will fall over when those hefty winds kick up. That is a nightmare for your home if the tree falls on it and you are now doing some rebuilding.
To complete the work, you will need to pull permits with your city for electrical and plumbing repairs and replacement to complete that renovation work. Part of the process of getting that project marked complete will include a visit from the City Code Inspector to approve the work done under those permits. When they make that inspection, they can require you to bring the whole house up to current building code. If your home is more than 10 years old, those code changes can involve significant costs to complete. Building Ordinance will cover that for you.
2. Complete Claim That Requires A Full Rebuild
In our video above, you saw footage of a mostly destroyed building due to fire. That same scene could be your home. Most cities in Texas have ordinances, or laws, on the books that require a structure to be taken all the way to the ground. That demolition work can become expensive. Would you rather that cost come out of your pocket or be paid by your home insurance policy?
If you aren't sure if your home insurance policy contains coverage for Building Ordinance, speak with an independent insurance agent today about your options. A full policy review at Insurance For Texans will include an evaluation of what is there now and what you need to cover any gaps that may exist.