Do you have home insurance? Many homeowners opt to take insurance out on their property simply because they are concerned about repairing the dwelling in the event of a claim. Others do so because their mortgage company requires coverage to be in place. 

However, it is important to remember there is a separate section of the policy contract that protects your family during certain instances—liability coverage. Here are three ways liability coverage protects homeowners. 

#1: Injuries to Visitors at Your Home 
One of the most important facets to liability coverage is that it covers you financially if someone visiting your home is injured while on the premises. However, the person cannot be someone living in your home, such as your spouse or children. 

An example of this coverage in use would be a pizza delivery guy tripping on your front porch step or your child's playmate from school falling off a swing set in your backyard. This portion of your contract generally covers reasonable medical and dental bills for the injured party. 

#2: Damage to Other People's Property 
Another thing that the liability portion of your home insurance covers is damage to other people's property. The damage can be caused directly by you, the family members living in your home or an object that you own. 

An example to consider is your child accidentally breaking a neighbor's window with a baseball. The liability coverage of your policy could pay to fix the damage. Other incidents might include a tree in your yard falling on a neighborhood fence, or even a situation where you personally cause damage accidentally to someone else's belongings. 

#3: Incidents Away from Home 
Incidents that happen away from your home may be included under your home insurance. This includes both medical injuries and property damage. For example, your normally friendly dog gets a little too excited while at the park and bites someone. Or, while living in an on-campus dorm at college, your child accidentally damages his roommate's $2,000 gaming laptop. These incidents are just a very small sampling of what could be considered an incident worthy of filing a claim on your home insurance policy. 

Of course, it is always important to read your policy carefully to determine what is included and excluded under the terms of your contract. For example, some carriers specifically exclude incidents that happen using your car or dog bites that involve certain breeds. If you have any questions regarding the liability coverage on your home policy, please contact your agent immediately. 

Do you have the right coverage? Call Larry Burkman Agency at 256-830-1123 for more information on Huntsville home insurance.