The Best Personal Liability Coverage for Homeowners (2024)

America's Best Home Insurance

The Best Personal Liability Coverage for Homeowners (1) Insurance Business America has engaged the country’s top brokers in one-on-one interviews and surveys to determine the leading Personal Liabilty coverage for homeowners. IBA’s inaugural Five-Star Excellence Award celebrates companies not only with outstanding product offerings, but also first-class broker support and industry knowledge. The Five-Star Excellence Award allows brokers to understand the partners their peers have chosen to present to clients – giving you an upper hand when selecting insurers to work with.

Methodology

Insurance Business America has engaged the country’s top brokers in one-on-one interviews and surveys to determine the leading Home Insurance products. IBA’s inaugural Five-Star Excellence Award celebrates companies not only with outstanding product offerings, but also first-class broker support and industry knowledge. The Five-Star Excellence Award allows brokers to understand the partners their peers have chosen to present to clients – giving you an upper hand when selecting insurers to work with.

What is personal liability insurance?

Personal liability coverage is an essential component of homeowners insurance as it provides financial protection for the owner and the residents of a household against claims of bodily injury or property damage that they may be held legally responsible for. These claims could include medical and legal expenses, as well as costs for unintentional damage policyholders or their family members may be held liable for on someone else’s property.

For instance, if a someone gets injured by slipping or falling down inside a person’s property, or a family member unintentionally breaks an expensive item by throwing something through a neighbor’s window, then the policyholder may be made to pay for the cost of the damages.

Is personal liability insurance the same as general liability insurance?

Both personal liability and general liability policies provide protection from claims involving bodily injuries and property damage. The main difference, however, is that personal liability insurance covers for injuries or damages that the insured is personally held responsible for while general liability policy, which is also called commercial general liability insurance, pays for the costs incurred from bodily and property harm associated with a business’ operations.

For example, personal liability insurance will pay for medical costs when someone accidentally falls down the stairs on a person’s home, while general liability policy covers the medical and legal expenses incurred if someone gets hurt inside or within the premises of a commercial establishment due to negligence on the part of the ownership.

How much personal liability coverage do homeowners need?

The amount of personal liability coverage homeowners need typically depend on the level of liability-related risk the property is exposed to and the total value of the owners assets.

Nice-to-have home features such as swimming pools, hot tubs, outdoor spas, trampolines, and treehouses are considered inherently liability risks for guests, especially children, and therefore push up premiums.

Additionally, in a lawsuit, the aggrieved party can go after a person’s assets not limited to those related to the insured property, but also all their other valuable possessions. If an owner has multiple properties, their personal liability policy should be able to cover the combined value of those properties.

What does homeowners personal liability insurance cover?

Personal liability insurance offers coverage for claims of bodily injury or property damage that a homeowner is held legally liable for. It protects policyholders from financial losses incurred from medical expenses resulting from the treatment of injuries and legal costs arising from litigation, settlement, and payment of damages. Most policies also cover family members and residents of a household for their actions within and outside the premises.

Among the occurrences personal liability insurance covers are accidental or intentional bodily injury inflicted on or by guests in a property, a tree from the homeowner’s premises falling on a neighbor’s house, dog bites or any property damaged caused by the canine, and inadvertent or deliberate damage caused on someone else’s property by the owner or their family members.

Most insurance policies pay for medical expenses, cost to repair property damage, a claimant’s loss income, life insurance death benefits for the claimant’s family, and legal fees.

Is personal liability insurance the same as umbrella insurance?

Umbrella insurance is a type of personal liability coverage that protects against claims that standard personal liability insurance does not cover. This kind of policy covers bodily injury and property damage, but coverage can extend beyond physical harm such as libel, slander, false imprisonment.

Similar to personal liability insurance, umbrella insurance coverage also extends to the policyholder’s family members and residents of their household. It does not, however, protect the policyholder’s property, which is covered by building or dwelling insurance.

What is the average cost of personal liability insurance?

Most insurance providers offer liability limits starting at $100,000. Premiums typically cost about $10 annually, although the price may slightly rise depending on where the policyholder lives. Coverage can also reach $500,000 with a corresponding increase in premiums.

For those needing increased liability protection, it is advisable to get a personal umbrella insurance.

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The Best Personal Liability Coverage for Homeowners (2024)

FAQs

What is a good amount of personal property coverage? ›

How much personal property insurance do you need? You need enough personal property insurance to cover the full value of all your belongings. For homeowners, insurance companies will often set your personal property coverage at a certain percentage of your dwelling coverage, such as 50% or 70%.

Is state farm umbrella policy worth it? ›

What State Farm Umbrella Policies Cover. State Farm's umbrella policies are a good choice for customers with a high net worth who want extra coverage for property damage, injuries, and possible lawsuits that could result from various types of incidents. To be eligible, you will also need an auto policy from State Farm.

What is the 80 20 rule for home insurance? ›

The 80% rule dictates that homeowners must have replacement cost coverage worth at least 80% of their home's total replacement cost to receive full coverage from their insurance company.

What do most homeowner's insurance policies provide in basic personal liability coverage? ›

Homeowners Liability Coverage

Policy limits for personal liability usually range from $100,000 to $500,000, and the coverage can help you pay for: Accidental property damage or bodily injury caused by you, your family or your pets. Legal costs if you're sued for property damage or bodily injury.

How do I calculate how much property insurance I need? ›

The first step in determining how much insurance you need is to make an analysis of the value of your home (excluding the value of the land) and the personal property within it. In determining the value of your home, you must calculate how much it will cost to replace the home if it were completely destroyed.

Should dwelling coverage be the same as purchase price? ›

Your dwelling coverage limit should be enough to rebuild your home if it's destroyed. This amount isn't necessarily the same as the price you paid for the house. Instead, this number depends on the features of your home and the building costs in your area.

What is the rule of thumb for homeowners insurance? ›

The 80 percent rule in homeowners insurance means that you must insure your home for at least 80 percent of the replacement cost for an insurer to cover the damages.

What is the appropriate amount of insurance that you should have on your house? ›

Most homeowners insurance policies provide a minimum of $100,000 worth of liability insurance, but higher amounts are available and, increasingly, it is recommended that homeowners consider purchasing at least $300,000 to $500,000 worth of liability coverage.

Should you insure your home to its full value? ›

Insuring your home to its full replacement value will help avoid significant out-of-pocket expenses that could eat into your savings and alter your estate plan. In addition, one should also consider the home's contents, other structures on the property, additional living expenses, liability, and more.

What is included in personal liability on homeowners insurance? ›

Personal liability insurance is about financial protection for you and your family. The personal liability coverage within your homeowners policy provides coverage to pay for claims of bodily injury and property damage sustained by others for which you or covered residents of your household are legally responsible.

What is the most common liability coverage? ›

The minimum amount of car insurance you'll typically need is state-required liability coverage. This allows you to pay for some, if not all, injuries and damages you're liable for in an accident. The most commonly required liability limits are $25,000/$50,000/$25,000, which mean: $25,000 in bodily injury per person.

What is the most common home insurance coverage? ›

The most common types are HO-1 (basic coverage), HO-2 (broad coverage), HO-3 (special form coverage), and HO-5 (comprehensive coverage). Additionally, there are specialized policies like condo insurance (HO-6) and renters insurance (HO-4), among others.

How is the amount of coverage available for personal property normally figured? ›

Your homeowners insurance policy will typically include some percentage – such as 50% -- of your dwelling coverage for personal property coverage. For example, if your policy's dwelling limit is $200,000, you'll have $100,000 in personal property insurance coverage.

What percent of coverage C is personal property? ›

Most home insurance providers (us included!) require you to carry a minimum amount of personal property coverage – usually around 10% of your dwelling coverage. This means a home that costs $300,000 to rebuild, typically needs a minimum of $30,000 in personal property coverage.

How do you calculate personal property value? ›

Guide to Determining Personal Property Value
  1. Create an Inventory of Personal Belongings.
  2. Assess the Condition.
  3. Replacement Cost vs. Actual Cash Value.
  4. Valuating High-Value Items.
  5. Custom or Specialty Items.
  6. Calculate Depreciation for Regular Items.
  7. Documenting Your Findings.
  8. Consult With Insurance Professionals.
Apr 3, 2024

Is property insurance worth it? ›

Even if you don't have a mortgage, homeowners insurance may still be worth the cost. Natural disasters, theft and other unanticipated risks can result in thousands of dollars in repairs, replacements and even lawsuits. Homeowners insurance helps offset those costs, greatly reducing what you'd pay out of pocket.

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