For those with a history of investment property policies, you may be familiar with the insurance company requirements for these policy types. If you are not familiar with what insurance underwriters look at when evaluating insurance risks, this may be helpful to you.
Insurance companies will perform a visual inspection of the exterior of the rental property to make sure there are no major liability hazards or damage to the property that could increase the likelihood of a claim. Below are a list of some of these items that if corrected, will decrease the likelihood of your coverage being canceled or decreased.
Types of Common Underwriting Concerns for Investment Insurance Policies
- Steps without handrails
- Damaged steps or porches
- Dogs with bite history or certain dog breeds
- Peeling paint on siding or eaves
- Aged or poor shape of roof
- Unlicensed vehicles
- Lack of updates to roof, heating, wiring, and, plumbing
- Dilapidated outbuildings, sheds, or garages
- Miscellaneous trash or appliances in the yard
- Dwellings written as rental units that are vacant or for sale
- Broken windows
- Trampolines on premises
- Skateboard ramps
- Pools without a standard 4 ft fence and locking gate
- Broken pavement on walkways and driveway
- Trees or branches overhanging roof
- Mold or mildew growth on siding, eaves, or roof
- Missing siding
- All correct owners listed as the named insured
This list is just some of the more common issues that can change or cancel your landlord policy or rental property insurance coverage by your insurance company upon inspection of the property. Insurance companies must provide you at least 14 days written notice to correct these items before they can cancel your policy. In many cases they will provide you even more time than this.
In any event, it is best to make sure that these items are addressed before your policy is issued as some of these things can take a lot of time for a contractor to fix. If you have received a cancel pending notice, once you can show proof to the underwriter of the company (usually by photos) that they have been corrected your policy can be reinstated. Please contact us with any specific questions you may have about any of these items or any other that you may have that you may fear will effect your rental property being insurable.