As a Minnesota indpendent insurance agency, Lakeside Insurance provides comprehensive homeowners insurance policies through many insurance companies to meet your specific needs . For owner-occupied homes, all the companies we represent have an optional homeowners insurance endorsement that may help protect you from the potentially disastrous effects of water backup. Water backup is one of the most common causes of loss for homeowners but also one of the most widely misunderstood coverages.
What’s covered, what's not?
Most Minnesota Homeowners policies provides coverage for water that backs up through sewers or drains as long as it originates on premises. As this chart shows, the optional endorsement expands the coverage to provide better protection. This optional endorsement is commonly called Water Backup, Escape of Water from a Sump, Sump Pump or Drain on the Residence Premises, or Backup of Sewer and Drains.
Covered by homeowners policy | Not covered by homeowners policy | Covered by the optional Water Backup endorsement |
Toilet or shower drain gets clogged and overflows causing damage | Sewer line in the street backs up and causes the overflow. | Coverage is expanded to include backup or overflow from causes originating off premises as long as the backup or overflow itself occurs on the premises
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| Water that escapes, overflows or discharges from a sump pump, sump well or any other system designed to remove water which is drained from the foundation area
| Coverage is provided when water escapes, overflows or discharges from a sump pump, drain, or other similar system |
What’s never covered?
- Flooding is the most common excluded coverage. Whether the result of a river overflowing its banks or a dam breaking, water damage caused by surface water entering the house is not covered.
- Overflow originating off-premises is not covered. This would include a sewer line breaking in the street and causing water to flow over the surface into the house.
- Sub-surface water is excluded. For example, if a swimming pool or sprinkler system leaks underground and causes water to seep through the foundation, there is no coverage under either the base policy or the optional endorsement.
What’s causes a drain or sewer backup?
- Tree roots entering in sewer line through small cracks and causing blockages
- Sanitary main blockages
- Faulty sump pump & power outages (no battery backup system for your sump pump)
- Any types of solid material build-up in the drain (i.e. hair, grease, disposable diapers, sanitary napkins, anything too large to go down the drain)
How much coverage should you have?
You see, a water backup loss can be caused by something out of your control and maybe something not even on your property! Protect your home and make sure you have adequate coverage for water backup on your home insurance policy. Coverage starts at $5,000 and can typically be increased up to $50,000 or $100,000 depending on the insurance company. How much damage could a couple of inches of water do in your basement?
Call Lakeside Insurance Brokers for a policy review
Contact Lakeside Insurance Brokers for free consultation and rate comparison today to make sure your home is properly protected.
All statements made are subject to provisions, exclusions, conditions and limitations of the applicable insurance policy. If the information conflicts with the policy language that it describes, the policy language prevails.
