Choosing Better Insurance

Home insurance coverage and rates mainly depend on risk. Everything you own or do in your home affects your home insurance if it affects your risk. Even the hobbies you enjoy at home can affect your home insurance if they affect your risk designation. Below are three hobbies that may affect your home insurance coverage and rates.

1. Expensive Hobbies

Home insurance covers your home's structure and contents. The value of your home's contents affects your home insurance limits and rates. Thus, hobbies that increase the value of your home's contents affect your home insurance.

Consider the following examples:

• Some people collect expensive items as a hobby. For example, people collect artwork, sports memorabilia, and antique guns.
• Some people play music as a hobby. Many musical instruments are relatively expensive.
• Some people invest in elaborate gaming gear for their video gaming hobby.

Home insurance contents coverage, which protects your home's contents, has a limit that is a percentage of your overall home insurance limit. You should increase the limit your hobby involves expensive items. Your insurance premiums might increase when you increase your coverage limit, but the increase is worth it if something happens to your belongings.

2. Income-Generating Hobbies

Many people know that home insurance excludes commercial assets or activities. However, some people don't know how insurance companies define commercial activities or assets.

According to insurance companies, anything that generates income is a commercial activity. The definition holds even if the activity is not your main hustle. The amount of profit the activity generates is also irrelevant. Thus, your hobby can easily fit into the definition.

Say you love cooking and occasionally invite others to view your cooking skills and try new recipes. The insurance companies may view your cooking hobby as a business if people pay to attend your cooking shows. In such a case, you need a rider or additional coverage to protect your hobby-cum-business.

3. Dangerous Hobbies

Lastly, a dangerous hobby may affect your ability to get insurance coverage and our insurance rates. Say you keep pets as a hobby; some pets are dangerous to people. Some insurance companies might not sell you coverage. You might have to pay elevated premiums to cover the risk of injuries that visitors to your home face due to the pets.

Evaluate your home insurance whenever your lifestyle changes to confirm that you always have adequate coverage. For example, you should evaluate your insurance when starting a new hobby. That way, you avoid expensive surprises when you lose something or your hobby triggers a liability claim.

For more information, contact a home insurance provider in your area.