While vacation homes have the luxury of winter fortification, your primary residence needs to provide you with warmth, electricity, shelter, and running water throughout the season. New England winters don’t make it easy.
Winter is the season where we get the most questions about insurance policies. If overhanging ice falls and damages your car, are you covered? If your relatives slip and fall on your icy steps, are you covered? If an ice storm knocks out your power for days, causes burst pipes in the basement, forces your food to spoil in the fridge, or even forces you and your family to pay for lodging in the interim—are you covered?
Seasonal damage isn’t always possible to predict, but there are steps you can take to minimize your losses in the event of a bad storm. Liability issues, such as a neighbor slipping and falling on the icy sidewalk in front of your house, arise out of the blue, but properly clearing snow and salting surfaces are the best ways to reduce your risk of exposure. Your agent can help you to determine what steps you can take at home to prevent damages or mediate risk, but your insurance policies are there to cover that which you can’t foresee.
We are always happy to be a resource when you need us, but we also want to keep you informed and prepared in advance of the unanticipated. Give your agent a call today to review your policy ahead of the season.