A clean and efficient driveway is essential since it serves as the main entrance to your property. It can also be necessary to climb up the slope of your home. A homeowner’s policy may also cover secondary buildings on your property, such as decks, patios, sheds, and driveways.
Your policy’s other structure coverage, up to your policy’s limits and minus your deductible, might pay to fix your driveway if covered risk damage. Most likely, the dwelling Homeowners Insurance or other structures portions of your policy cover your driveway.
Your detached garage or carport may be accessible from your driveway and may be covered by the other structure’s portion of your insurance, but it should still be covered. Your driveway may be harmed by a number of these covered risks, including fire, hail, and hurricane damage.
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Driveway Replacement or Repair
If you claim your homeowners’ insurance and your driveway is damaged due to a covered risk, you should be reimbursed for a new one. Imagine your driveway being destroyed by a tornado or struck by a tree after a severe storm. A homeowner’s plan typically covers both of these scenarios.
You could make a claim if the damage exceeds your deductible, and your insurance company would either compensate you for the entire driveway or replace the damaged area. Your supplier should also handle debris removal, including removing the old driveway and any fallen trees.
If your driveway needs to be replaced, ensure you know if your insurance will pay the driveway’s replacement cost or its real cash value. Actual cash value coverage for other construction is included in some plans. Since depreciation is considered, the actual cash value will nearly always pay for less than the replacement cost.
When determining the replacement cost of your home, consider the cost of your driveway and any potential repaving and grading costs if driveway damage is something you’re concerned about when purchasing homeowners insurance coverage.
Reasons Why Your Driveway Isn’t Included
However, not all types of weather-related damage are covered by insurance. Homeowner’s insurance does not cover flood damage or earth tremors, which is unfortunate because these are two of the most common reasons for driveway damage.
Additionally, your provider won’t pay up if a flood damaged your driveway in any other way or if it was washed out by rain. Moreover, you wouldn’t be protected if someone who lives in residence did the damage or if it happened gradually over time.
For instance, your insurance won’t help if you finally wear out your driveway because you park and drive your car over the same spot for years because you caused the problem due to normal wear and tear. Driveways made of asphalt are typical throughout much of the United States. They tend to crack with time if baked in the sun every day.
However, if the earth beneath them shifts due to flooding, they could sustain harm. These occurrences would also not be covered because they weren’t unexpected, and the damage was consistent with normal wear and tear.
If your driveway leads to a detached garage or sheds where you run your business, that would be another unlikely but potential problem that could preclude coverage.
Your insurer might view it as a component of your home business rather than a structural component of your home, necessitating a different insurance policy that is not included in a homeowner’s policy.
Standard Homeowners’ Insurance Policies
Standard homeowner’s insurance policies won’t cover damage to your driveway from certain natural disasters and perils such as:
- Earthquakes
- Sinkholes
- Floods
- Landslides
- Mudslides
- Ordinance or Law
- Neglect
- War
- Settling, Shrinking, Bulging or Expanding
- Birds, Vermin, Rodents, Insects
Tips and Tricks For Protecting Your Driveway
Proactively Guard Your Investment
Varying seasonal temperatures can enormously impact your driveway’s overall condition. Frost can cause havoc on the pavement when ice inevitably forces its way upward. As a result, your driveway could crack, lift, or warp. Spreading a driveway sealant can help avoid more extensive repairs or replace the driveway altogether.
Don’t Cogitate Things Down
Driveways are usually fitted as a structure in your homeowners’ insurance policy that gets covered from financial loss. So, depending on the deterioration, your homeowners’ insurance should cover your driveway.
Also, avoid parking your car or other heavy objects near the driveway’s edge. Under extreme pressure, the edges may be more prone to chipping and cracking.
Flush Fluids Away
Prolonged exposure to moisture and fluids can damage both asphalt and concrete driveways. Gasoline and other auto-related liquids that drip continually can cause a breakdown of the compound, leaving you with a series of holes and ruts.
Additionally, watch out for mold and mildew, which can develop on an unmaintained concrete driveway. Apply a sealer regularly to help prevent moisture buildup on the driveway surface.
Conclusion
Driveways are usually included as a structure in your homeowners’ insurance policy that gets protected from financial loss. So, depending on the damage, your homeowners’ insurance should cover your driveway.
