Mobile Home Insurance FAQ

You are not legally required to have mobile home insurance by the state. However, if you financed the home with a loan, your lender may require you to get this policy to help protect their investment.

Even if nobody requires you to take out this coverage, it’s recommended. Simply put, if you can’t afford to replace a lost home with your own money, you need to protect it with a good plan.

It is the same coverage. Mobile homes became known as manufactured homes after 1976.

A mobile home policy provides many different kinds of coverage depending on your plan. This includes dwelling, other structures, and personal property. It also includes coverage for liability, collision, and additional living expenses.

Below, we have more info on each type of plan. Remember, it’s important to check the fine print of your policy to ensure it has all the types of protection for your needs.

• Dwelling

  Dwelling coverage forms the bulk of any plan. This helps you repair or even fully replace your home after it is damaged by certain qualifying events. These events typically include fire, lightning, explosions, burst pipes, vandalism, animal attacks, and select other weather events, such as wind, hail, and damage caused by the weight of ice and snow on top of your home.

  You get to choose the limit for your insurance policy. If you wish to be able to replace the entire home if needed, then you’ll need a limit at least as high as the current value. It wouldn’t hurt to get a higher amount or even take out extended replacement coverage so you don’t get any nasty surprises if rebuilding ends up costing more than you originally estimated.

• Other Structures

  As the name implies, this coverage protects other structures outside the home itself. It primarily covers fences and sheds, but your policy will specify if it includes other structures (such as a deck) that you may add to your property.

• Personal Property

  Personal property coverage helps repair or replace items within your home that are stolen or damaged. It is usually intended for more expensive items like furniture and electronics but may cover other important items as well.

  Keep in mind that the default policy will only pay up to the value the items had when you took out the insurance policy. If the items have grown in value, then it may be worth increasing your coverage or even taking out a replacement cost policy instead so that you can fully replace anything damaged or stolen.

• Liability

  Liability coverage helps protect you against legal expenses. If someone visits your home and gets hurt, they may try to sue you. With liability, you can pay for their medical bills and, if needed, pay to protect yourself in court.

  Liability also helps pay for certain property damage you may cause. Considering that even successfully defending yourself in court could land you in major debt, it’s very important to have the protection offered.

• Collision

  If your home gets damaged during transit, this special type of coverage helps pay for repairs.

• Additional Living Expenses

  Additional living expenses coverage helps cover your expenses if you are temporarily unable to live in your mobile home. For example, if the damage from a fire or other covered event is bad enough that you can’t safely live inside the home, this type pays to put you and your family in a hotel so you have somewhere to live while your home is repaired.

The primary thing that is not covered by a typical policy is flooding. While it’s possible to take out a separate flood policy, the standard coverage will not protect you against this weather event.

On a similar note, a standard policy does not cover earthquakes. However, it is still possible to take out a separate earthquake policy if you are worried about seismic events in your area.

As the owner, you need to be especially wary of the home getting infested by animals or (a more common danger) insects. Neither of these infestations is covered by the standard policy because carriers believe pest control to be the sole responsibility of the homeowner.

Additionally, it has become more common for people to work from home. However, if you incur damage due to using your home for business purposes, it may not be covered by a standard policy simply because you need a commercial policy to protect against business-related dangers.

Finally, this coverage does not cover the basic wear and tear of your home or anything in it. As with car coverage, this coverage protects against sudden and unexpected damage, theft, or vandalism. It won’t pay out if, say, one of your ancient appliances that has been on the fritz for years finally stops working.