Will Home Insurance Cover Your Broken Steps and Railing?

Home insurance provides coverage for most components of your home. This includes any attached features, such as your porch, patio, or a set of stairs outside your home. In some cases, these structures can suffer damage. Depending on the cause of the damage, your insurance company may pay for the losses. It’s important to keep these areas in good working condition. Here are a few examples of when your insurance can help you do that.

What Caused the Damage to Them?

At the heart of the question here is whether or not you have coverage for the damage to your home’s fixtures. Most often, steps and railings fall in line with structural components of your home. That means they are a component of your policy. If they are not on the structure of the home, be sure to verify your coverage with your agent.

Second, you need to determine what caused the damage to occur in the first place. Home insurance covers damage related to accidental and unavoidable instances. It does not cover instances of normal wear and tear.

Here is a look at a few examples to determine if your policy is likely to cover the damage you have.

• A storm causes damage to the steps or the railing. High winds blow down the railing, for example. Your policy will likely cover this damage.
• A fire breaks out in the home. The steps leading to the second floor suffer significant damage. The fire has coverage under the plan. That means the damage to the steps has coverage as well.
• The steps are breaking down due to weathering. They have peeling paint. Perhaps the railing has damage from pests or rot. This is an instance in which your policy is not likely to offer coverage. This is part of the home’s normal wear and tear.

If you are unsure of what to expect, contact your home insurance agent. Discuss what happened and why. Then, work with your Texas City agent to better understand the amount of protection you have under your plan. Learn what the deductible is for the policy (this is the amount you have to pay before the insurance covers the rest). Then, find out the maximum cost of damage your insurance will cover.

Most often, you will need to document the incident clearly to show what the cause of the damage is. If your damage falls under your coverage, work with a skilled and licensed contractor for the repairs. Your home insurance aims to keep your property secure for you and your family to use. Coverage like this can help make that possible.