Home Vacancies & Your Insurance Policy

If you’re planning a vacation, you may have heard the whole misconception about a home left vacant for over 30 days as grounds for voiding your home insurance policy. A home that is left vacant is understandably riskier to insure, especially as issues that arise – such as a leak in your basement – can worsen with time to where they can cause thousands of dollars’ worth of flooding damage. Moreover, a home that is left unoccupied can be an easier, more appealing target for thieves. Can an empty home really void a home insurance policy if you do not disclose your absence to your insurer and they find out? Well, it depends. In this blog post, we will dig a little deeper on home vacancies and insurance.

Why emptier homes are riskier

Statistically, empty homes are much riskier to insure than homes that have occupants day-in and day-out. Damages that go unnoticed can increase in severity in just a few days, and in a period of 30 days, they can reach astronomical levels. If the damage had been caught from the instant it first started, it may not have reached such levels. This goes for water damage, corroded electrical wiring, and more.

An empty home – or any home with its lights off and no indication of occupants for a prolonged duration – can become more appealing to burglars. Drifters and vandals may also be more attracted to homes that have a buildup of newspaper on the front porch, an unkept lawn, and more signs of obvious vacancy. Homes that are consistently occupied do not face the same risk of loss.

What does “vacancy” look like to an insurance provider?

Vacancy can look different depending on the insurance provider and the policy. Sometimes, a home is deemed vacant in as little as 48 to 72 hours. However, providers may distinguish between short-term and long-term vacancies; long-term vacancies are the riskier of the two and can be deemed long-term in a period of between 30-60 days. Now, here’s where it gets tricky. It largely depends on your insurance provider whether a vacant home is grounds for notification or even voiding a policy, but mostly the reason for informing your insurance provider about a vacancy is so that you can inform them that you have a house sitter arranged and that your payments will continue as per usual. In addition, if you are renting, you should always inform a landlord about your plans to travel.

Protecting your home during a period of vacancy

Some insurance companies do not require notification if you are taking a vacation and have intents to return to your home, but it’s highly advised that you still take necessary precautions before a prolonged vacancy to ensure that your home is protected. This includes:

• Hiring a house sitter to check in every 24-48 hours.
• Turning off the water and draining toilet tanks.
• Disconnecting appliances.
• Cutting grass, collecting newspaper, and installing motion sensor lights before leaving.
• Putting non-toxic antifreeze in plumbing fixtures.
• Installing alarm systems, smoke detectors, and carbon monoxide detectors.

For additional tips, discuss with Excalibur Insurance. The more you can do to give off the image of being present and reducing the risk of loss, the better.

What if I snowbird during the winters?

A snowbird is typically someone who lives in the more northern parts of North America that travels to warmer locations for the wintertime. This can be for one month at a time to as long as November through to April. Longer vacancies may merit a call to your insurance provider and opting in for a separate vacant home insurance policy. These can include homes that are left vacant for longer than 30 or 60 days, depending on the exact policy and provider, and they may not be available to everyone depending on the risks that your vacant home could face.

The TLDR; it doesn’t hurt to give your insurance company a call before you head off on a planned vacation, just to let them know that you have arranged for someone to either temporarily stay at your home or check in every couple of days and that you are set on making payments. It’s not mandatory to inform your insurance company, but it can save you some headache later down the line and it’s always better to be transparent and open with your provider than risk the possibility of getting in trouble for undisclosed information later down the line.

Happy travels!