You’ve made the decision to renovate your home either on your own or with a contractor. Do not forget to inform your insurer before the start of the work so that together you can determine the extent of these and provide you with the necessary advice.

Be properly covered before, during and after renovations

Whether you decide to add a room to your home (outbuilding or garage) or make major improvements, your insurer must know the estimated value and duration of the renovations.

If we’re talking about major renovations, you may need to be covered for theft of materials.

And if you are handling the renovations yourself, the insurer must know if professional workers will be hired or if family members will lend a hand. All this to help them asses the risk of injury to workers.

Also, depending on the extent of the projected renovation, you may need to purchase a construction insurance. Additional coverage (or endorsement) will be added to your contract to cover, among other things, your materials against the same risks as your home insurance contract (fire, wind, hail, lightning, etc.).

Whether the premises will be unoccupied during the work is an important point to consider. If so, monitoring is necessary, or you should at least be able to live in the house temporarily.

An updated file makes the claim process easier

To offer you the coverage best adapted to your situation, your insurer must consider any features that were added or improved after the last renovations.

It is important to have insurance coverage that reflects the real value of your home and its contents.

A premium decrease is possible

If your renovations add value to your home, your insurance premiums could effectively increase. However, certain types of renovations may reduce your premiums like upgrading your plumbing, for example, or changing your roof which reduces the risk of water damage.

Among the other improvements, converting from oil-based heating to electric heating. All these elements will be considered in the premium calculation.

Jackie Beaudoin, Leclerc Insurance and Financial Services
Source : Infoassurance.ca