Be vigilant about insurance

Dear Dave,

My wife and I were talking the other day about how our home, travel trailer and cars have appreciated recently. Everything is paid for except the home, but we were wondering if we should increase the amount of insurance coverage on these items since they have skyrocketed in value.

Dale

Dear Dale,

Yes! And you should make it a habit to review all your insurance coverage once a year.

With most homeowners insurance policies, you have a stated amount of coverage. Some policies have a “cheat” that allows you an extra 5% or 10%, maybe even 20% in some cases. But if you’ve got a $300,000 policy on a house you bought five years ago, and it has appreciated to $450,000 then burns to the ground, you’re screwed. The only thing dumber than not having enough insurance to replace belongings like that is having no insurance at all.