Once again, much of the United States is freezing cold and snowy.
A frigid winter storm socked in Washington, D.C. and the mid-Atlantic in recent days after causing hundreds of accidents and flight cancellations and knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of households.
Any extreme weather can wreak havoc on properties and infrastructure. Between the single-digit temperatures and severe windchill settling over the United States, insurance concerns are bound to arise.
The slideshow above illustrates five insurance coverage questions related to winter-weather damage that have been submitted to FC&S Expert Coverage Interpretation and answered by policy experts. Follow this link to dig deeper into the FC&S articles and resources about winter weather and insurance.
Frozen pipes are always an issue, especially if the insured loses power. The standard homeowners policy requires the insured to maintain heat in the dwelling in order for frozen pipes to be covered.
What happens when the insured cannot keep the pipe warm due to a power outage? The homeowners policy will provide coverage. A loss of power is not the fault of the insured.
Remember, interior heat should never be set below 55 degrees in order to prevent pipes from freezing. That said, in areas where homes may not be well insulated, even keeping the heat running, opening the cupboards and keeping the water dripping in severely cold temperatures may not be enough to prevent frozen pipes. As long as the insured is responsible and does his best to keep things warm, there should be coverage.
Commercial insurance policies are similar to homeowners policies in this regard: Freezing is excluded unless the insureds did their best to maintain heat in the building, or drained the pipes and shut off the water supply.
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