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What is the Difference between an HO3 and HE7 Home Policy?

By June 11, 2020March 30th, 2022No Comments
Homeowners insurance for NC residents

Insuranceez? ย That is what it sounds like to most people when you hear terms likeย HO3ย andย HE7. The terms refer to different home insurance policies available in North Carolina. ย If you are like most people your home is the single biggest asset you will ever purchase. ย You want to make sure you have it protected and covered with not just an average policy but the very best policy the market has to offer. Oโ€™Connor Insurance has partnered with insurance companies like Erie Insurance and Travelers that offer the HE7 because it is a more comprehensive home policy. ย You should know that most insurance companies offer only an HO3 home insurance policy. ย Donโ€™t kid yourself into thinking it doesnโ€™t matter which policy you have. ย It will matter the most when you have a claim. ย That is where the rubber meets the road and the only time your home insurance coverage matters. ย To understand the difference between the two different home insurance policies think of thisย analogy. ย When you go car shopping you know there are a variety of car models from base to fully loaded. ย The HO3 policy is a base policy and the HE7 is loaded. If you want a fully loaded model you purchase the HE7 with the HE21 endorsement. In this case the best part is the fully loaded HE7/21 policy does not costย anywhereย near as much as a luxury car.

Here are 7 coverage differences between the HO3 and the HE7/21 home insurance policies โ€“ coverages that could cost you thousands of dollars out of your pocket:

  1. Your personal belongings are covered based on comprehensive perils on an HE7/21 policy.ย  That means your belongings are covered unless there is a specific exclusion in the home policy therefore the coverage is much broader. ย  An HO3 policy covers your things based on named perils, which means there is a list of items that are covered making the coverage much more specific. ย Here is an example of why having broader coverage is better: ย Imagine you are doing a quick DIY project over the weekend and spill paint all over your dining room table and that beautiful new rug you just bought for under the tableโ€“accidents happen. The table and the rug would be covered by the HE7/21 but NOT covered by the HO3.
  2. On all home policies there are certain items that have limited amounts of coverage. ย Some examples are theft of jewelry, guns, cash, fursโ€ฆthere are a few more but you get the idea. The HE7/21 limits for these items are higher than the HO3 policy. ย On the HO3 you would have to pay an additional fee to get additional coverage for a lot of things you might have coverage for on the HE7/21. ย Here is an example: ย If someone breaks into your home and steals jewelry, the HE7/21 would cover up to $5500 for all your jewelry (maximum per item is $1500).ย  The HO3 only covers $3000 total (maximum per item is $1,000).
  3. So many people work from home these days. ย On the HE7/21 you have up to $5,000 to cover your business property that is at your house. ย So that executive desk and new laptop you bought would be covered up to $5,000. ย On the HO3 you would have just $2500 โ€“ barely enough to cover the desk let alone the laptop. ย Another instance when you would have to buy additional coverage if you had an HO3.
  4. One other coverage that has a limit on the home policy is money. ย Yep I am talking cold hard cash. ย If you keep a little cash under your mattress for a rainy day the HE7/21 will pay up to $1,000 when your house burns down with the cash in it. ย The HO3 will reimburse you just $200. ย If you are one of those people who donโ€™t believe in savings accounts and you keep more than $1,000 please purchase a fire resistant safe because you will only get $1,000 covered on your HE7/21 policy.
  5. All home policies have a coverage called Loss of Use. ย Loss of Use provides living expenses if you are unable to live in your house because of a covered loss. ย The HE7/21 would also pay your primary mortgage expense in addition to paying for you to live elsewhere because of a covered insurance claim. ย The HO3 would not pay the mortgage just the expense of having to live elsewhere.
  6. One of the most overlooked coverages is Sewer and Drain backup. ย This little known coverage provides coverage if the sewage and or drain system backs up into your house. ย Our agency has seen countless claims where a toilet has overflowed into the downstairs of a home. ย One particularly nasty claim had a toilet overflow into a basement. ย The basement was finished and had a family room with a ceiling fan on. ย Yes, you got the saying rightโ€ฆit literally hit the fan. Yuck. ย The HE7/21 covers up to $20,000 in damage automatically while the HO3 has no coverage built into the policy so you have to pay an additional fee to have this coverage.
  7. Everyone knows you have home insurance to cover your home but people often forget the homeowners policy covers you for liability too. ย You can select the amount of personal liability coverage you purchase with limits beginning at $100,000. ย On the HE7/21 personal liability will also cover something called personal injury. ย Without getting too technical personal injury covers things like false arrest, detention and imprisonment and malicious prosecution. The HO3 has no coverage provided. ย This is one of those coverages you wonโ€™t put any thought into at all unless you find yourself in a very unfortunate and completely unforeseen situation like this and then you would count your lucky stars you have coverage!

 

There you have a snapshot into insuranceez and some of the differences between an HO3 and a fully loaded HE7 policy with a 21 endorsement. The conclusion is the HE7 policy with a 21 endorsement has far better coverage (and is often less expensive believe it or not) than an HO3 home insurance policy. ย If you would like to see how the HE7/21 would work for your family reach out to us by calling us at 704-510-8884. ย We would love to help you make sense of the crazy world of insurance.

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704-510-8884

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