Top Insurance Options for Your Beach House

Beach homes can be an incredibly fun luxury for you and your family to enjoy. They’re conveniently located near the ocean–- often within walking distance–and they can serve as the center for many different treasured family vacations and memories. 

But while your beach home is working to preserve your family’s memories, you need to ensure you’re protecting it from a wide range of potential damages it may be exposed to. You can do this by investing in the right insurance options.

So let’s take a minute to look at the differences between insurance for your standard home and your beach home, factors that may impact your beach insurance options, and then dive into the top insurance options you can invest in for your beach home.

Standard Homeowners Insurance vs Beach House Insurance

The insurance you get for your beach house may look very different from your standard homeowners policy. This is because the majority of insurance companies will view beach houses and other coastal or waterfront properties as much more high-risk than traditional, landlocked homes. 

Carriers that provide beach house insurance will need to take many additional insurance needs into account when drafting your policy like storms, flooding, and other location-specific hazards which can lead to your beach home policy being more expensive–and extensive–than the policy you have for your permanent home. 

Factors that Can Impact Your Beach House Insurance Options

There are two specific factors that can affect your beach house insurance in a big way. These include your home’s distance to the water and its age.

How Close Your Home is to the Ocean

The closer to the water your beach house is, the riskier it is for insurance companies to insure. If your beach home is very close to the water–especially if it’s located in a high-flood zone–you may find it difficult to get your property insured by many insurance companies.

Your Home’s Age

The age of your beach home can be a huge factor in determining your insurance options. While standard older homes may have to deal with more expensive insurance coverage than newer standard homes, it’s nothing compared to the price difference for coverage in old beach homes versus newer beach homes. 

This is because while both older standard homes and older beach homes deal with certain expected levels of wear and tear over time, beach homes are much more susceptible to long-term damage from extended exposure to wind, moisture, and salt water.

Top Insurance Options for Your Beach House

There are several different kinds of insurance that may be especially beneficial for homeowners who have beach houses or other coastal properties. These can include traditional homeowners or vacation home insurance, flood policies, windstorm policies, and hurricane insurance.

Homeowners or Vacation Home Insurance

The base of any insurance coverage you purchase for a home should be a homeowners or vacation home policy. These policies work to provide you with a base level of protection across a wide range of potential damages and liabilities that you may face. 

Homeowners insurance and vacation home insurance both can provide coverage to offset costs relating to damage to the interior of the home, its exterior, any loss or theft of possessions you may become a victim of, and personal liability you may face for harm sustained by others whether accidentally caused by you, one of your family members, or even your pets.

Flood Insurance

Because your home is located near a massive body of water, the danger you face from flooding is much higher than it would be in other locations. This makes flood insurance a must-have for your beach house. 

Flood insurance can cover a wide range of damages and potential losses including, but not limited to:

• Electrical Systems
• Plumbing
• Water Heaters
• Cooking Stoves
• Refrigerators
• Dishwashers
• Permanently Installed Carpeting
• Foundation Walls
• Staircases
• Detached Garages
• Fuel Tanks
• Cabinets
• Solar Energy Equipment
• And more.

Note that to be covered, the damage caused must be a direct result of flooding. If you face water damages that occur because of a sewer backup, pipe burst, or other water-related damage, there is a good chance it won’t be covered under this policy type.

Windstorm Insurance

Windstorm insurance can protect your beach home against expensive costs relating to wind damage caused by gales, hurricanes, hail, and a range of other wind-related systems. This insurance type will usually cover physical damage sustained by the home’s structure and any personal belongings that may be damaged due to the wind.

Note that while wind-related storms can be closely related to flooding and other storm systems, windstorm insurance will not provide you with protections for anything other than wind damage. You will need separate policies to offset the damages your beach home may sustain as a result of other weather.

Hurricane Insurance

Hurricane insurance is a policy type that can be more all-encompassing than flood or windstorm insurance. Hurricane insurance can work to protect you if your beach home sustains damage from flooding, windstorms, and other elements so long as they are directly related to a hurricane.

However, some insurance providers may require you to have an additional flood insurance policy anyway because flood damage can be incredibly costly. In fact, a single inch of floodwater can cost more than $10,000 in damages. 

Key Takeaways

Many kinds of damage can affect any home, but your beach home may be much more vulnerable to certain damages than a standard home. Make sure you have all of the insurance coverage you need to protect your beach home so that you aren’t stuck covering expensive damages out of pocket.

Reach out to our stellar insurance team at Anderson Insurance Agency today to discuss your beach home insurance policy options and see if our insurance coverage options will be a good fit for you.