Property Insurance

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An insurance policy that provides protection to the properties against various kinds of risks, such as fire, theft, smoke, wind, hail, weight of ice and snow, lightning and more is called property insurance. It concerns with the specialized forms of insurance like flood insurance, earthquake insurance, home insurance or boiler insurance. This policy also provides liability coverage in case someone other than owner or renter is injured while on the property, and decides to sue. However, it doesn’t cover the damages caused by water sources such as floods, tsunamis, drain backups, sewer backups, groundwater seepage, standing water, etc.
The concept of property insurance was originated in protecting the maritime enterprises of the Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans from periods earlier than 533 A.D. When merchantmen expanded their operations and exploration for new goods they began to pool their resources to spread the risk of loss of their ships, goods, buildings and property among local bankers, other merchants and affluent families. By the 1600s merchants were insuring buildings against fire and goods against theft. Today every single thing is insured so as to reduce the risks and losses.
Property insurance, today, is a very broad concept. It is a multi-billion dollar annual business covering all the losses and risks that different commercial and personal property bears.  Today, property insurance covers more than just tangible real and personal property, it has come to recover lost income, business interruptions, computers, business papers, and trademark, patent and copyright infringement.
Property can be insured in two ways: open perils and named perils. Open perils provide compensation to the loss and damages of the property caused by any perils except those that are specifically excluded. It is also called as all-risks policy. Such type of policy is suitable if you want to cover a large number of perils or if you don’t have specific dangers in your area of business, but want a good insurance coverage. Named perils are different than that of the open perils. Named perils policy specifically includes the name of the certain perils, damages or hazards that may occur and covers that only. This type of policy can be adopted when you live in the area that is at risks for certain events or natural disasters, like living near the coasts where hurricanes area common, or living in the Midwest that frequently experiences tornadoes.
           

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Property insurance can be commercial property insurance or personal property insurance. Commercial property insurance is used to cover any type of commercial property from such perils as theft, fire, natural disasters, etc. It is carried out by a variety of businesses, including manufacturers, retailers, service-oriented businesses and non-profit organizations. Whereas personal property insurance compensates for the items in home that are not permanently attached to the structure itself. It may include furniture, clothing and various household appliances such as refrigerators, television, washing machines, and clothes drier.
            There are different types of property insurance policies available. Most of the property insurance is categorized according to the needs of the policy holders. For example, a landlord being a house owner may have various property insurance needs. Here the property insurance required is rental property insurance. Rental property insurance covers the damages and losses arising from the negligence on the tenants’ parts. Besides this, there are various other property insurances available for the personal as well as commercial basis. From small businesses to large enterprises there are different kinds of property insurance coverage for each.
            We can get property insurance through a written contract, called a policy. A property insurance policy binds the policy holder legally with an insurance company. The property insurance policy holder has to pay certain amount of money called “premium” and in return of which the company agrees to compensate for the damages and losses caused to the insured property. These damages or losses to be covered by the insurance policy are specifically mentioned in the contract.
            As a homeowner and a business operator, property insurance is something that should not be neglected. Property insurance provides various benefits and securities. Monetary value is one these benefits that property insurance policy can offer. The amount of money you can get from the property insurance company will depend upon how much property insurance you’ve bought at the time of contract-signing. Similarly, property insurance financial protection if a third gets injured or damaged because of any action happened in the property. It’s also required by most mortgage lenders. A major benefit of getting the property insured is that it covers the replacement value. Most people do not care much about the replacement value and they will lose everything in case of disasters like natural calamities. The process of getting things back to the normal becomes very difficult and painful if you have not insured the properties.
            The cost of property insurance depends on the items covered, the amount of coverage, the specific insurance company, the featured of the real estate, the region of the property, the amount of the deductible, and other factors. Most providers offer discounts for enhancements such as security systems and other safety measures. Policy premiums are generally invoiced once a year and due in advance.
            One should be very careful while before insuring their property. At the time of insurance, companies promise an attractive amount of coverage but it can be vastly different when it comes to compensate for the damages. Thus, it is very important to know how claims are handled, especially when it comes to writing you a check. Therefore, it is very important to know about each and every dimensions of the policy before insuring the personal as well as commercial properties.