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Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Furnace Repair?

If my furnace needs repairs, does homeowners insurance cover it?

Winter is already here, which means we need to make sure your furnace is in good condition to be able to protect you and your family from drastic temperatures.

It is common for our customers to have many doubts related to various aspects of furnaces, and we feel it is our responsibility to help them better understand or solve them all. So, here we are with answers to a most common question – are furnace repairs a part of homeowners’ insurance?

What is Homeowners Insurance?

What is homeowner’s insurance? In short, a homeowners’ insurance plan provides coverage for damage to your house and other structures on the property where your house is located. There are different plans that range from very basic to highly customized. While we can’t say what your specific plan covers or does not cover, it certainly won’t hurt to ask your insurance provider if something is covered that relates to your HVAC system.

The following are some scenarios that might be covered under your homeowner’s plan:

Broken and Damaged Furnaces:

If your furnace suddenly stops working one day due to standard breakage or physical wear and tear, it most likely will not be covered by homeowner’s insurance but possibly by a homeowner’s warranty or furnace warranty.

Accidents

Incidents that cause damage to your home whether inflicted by nature or by people could be covered. An example could be an uninsured motorist crashes a car into your garage and smashes your furnace. Since there is no auto insurance, your homeowner’s insurance might have to pick up the cost of replacing your furnace. Obviously the situation will have to be evaluated. Or, a strong gust of wind causes a tree to fall on your garage and it ruins the furnace, then that would most likely also be covered.

Natural Calamities:

Some natural calamities cause irreversible damage to the furnace. Situations where you can expect insurance coverage might include – external fires, hails, windstorms, and blizzards. Calamities like earthquakes, mudslides, floods, etc. could also be covered in your particular insurance plan.

Furnace repair factors that are typically not covered by homeowners insurance

The factors which typically won’t be covered under homeowners’ insurance are:

Usual Repairs and Damages

If the furnace ceases to work due to low maintenance or its usage duration is relatively long, the users need to bear the repair costs. Rust, corrosion, and smog aren’t covered under the general policy, but you can claim the insurance under mechanical damage. If the damage is due to negligence or a long lifespan, the repair costs are entirely on the customer.

Damage from Pests

Pests like rats eat the wiring and electrical components of the appliance. Damages from rats, birds, vermin, insects, rodents, or your pet aren’t covered under the insurance. So, in such cases, you won’t receive the repair coverages. Other common reasons excluded in insurance coverage are intentional losses, wars, nuclear hazards, power failures, and some natural calamities like earthquakes, etc if your insurance policy specifically does not cover them.

Usually, some people include equipment breakdown coverage as a part of their homeowners’ insurance. By doing this, you can save most parts’ repairs that can sometimes be expensive. This extension covers a wide range of appliances apart from furnaces, including refrigerators, ovens, security systems, computers, electrical systems, etc.

Though some situations are unavoidable, taking extra care can prevent damages to some extent. As the furnaces have more moving parts than others, they require proper and regular maintenance to serve better. We feel our customers must learn and implement the following tips to have an efficiently working furnace.

Ensure seasonal maintenance of the furnace and boiler equipment to avoid frequent repairs and breakdown.
Change the filters every two months for better functionality. The users can easily replace the filters by following the user manuals that we give along with the furnace.
Remove the air present in the boiler’s pressure vessel at least once a year in the least.
Get professional help from us to check with the heating system’s exhaust if there are any carbon monoxide leaks from the furnace.

To make an insurance claim, all you need to do is contact your insurance company and start the claim with them and if approved, then contact us to schedule a time for our furnace repairman services. We might require some essential details like the policy information, damage details, and any other relevant information. You can always contact us for any assistance or queries related to homeowners’ insurance, and we’d be happy to serve you at any point in time.