What Are the 11 Basic Perils in Home Insurance?
Fire, smoke, lightning, windstorm, hail, theft, vandalism, explosions, and damage from vehicles, aircraft or falling objects.
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Where these 11 perils show up in your policy
These 11 perils define what's called an HO-1 policy, the most basic and least common form sold today. If you're buying a house, the policy your lender actually expects is probably broader than this, usually an HO-3, which covers your dwelling for every cause of damage except what's specifically excluded, like flood or earthquake, then lists named perils like these 11 for your belongings. So this list matters most for checking your personal property coverage, not your dwelling coverage. Your declarations page will say which form you have, HO-1 through HO-8. If it says HO-3, you have broader dwelling protection than these 11 perils suggest. Either way, flood and earthquake aren't on this list because they're never standard, and if your new house sits in a flood zone, your lender will tell you separately.
Coverage levels vary more than the price tag suggests
Two policies priced close together can protect very different things. Before closing, check that the dwelling and personal property coverage match what rebuilding your house would actually cost.
Why these 11 perils don't include everything that can go wrong
Water damage is where this list trips people up. Fire, windstorm, theft, the 11 perils cover plenty, but a pipe bursting under your kitchen sink isn't on it, and neither is water backing up through a sewer line. Most policies, including HO-3, do cover sudden water damage from a burst pipe, but that's a separate line from this named-peril list and it comes with its own exclusions. Gradual leaks, the kind that rot a subfloor over months, are usually not covered no matter what form you have. If the house you're buying has an older water heater or visible plumbing, ask about this specifically rather than assuming it's bundled in.
Earth movement is excluded almost everywhere, and that covers more than earthquakes. Sinkholes, landslides, and soil settling around a foundation usually fall under the same exclusion. Some states require insurers to offer sinkhole coverage separately, so if you're buying in an area known for it, that's worth asking about before closing rather than after a crack shows up in the foundation.
Maintenance problems are never a peril, basic or otherwise. A roof that fails because it's twenty years old, mold that grows because humidity sat unchecked, termite damage, these are treated as the owner's responsibility to prevent, not something insurance steps in for. This matters most at closing because a home inspection might flag a roof near the end of its life. If that's the case, some insurers will want it replaced or will adjust coverage accordingly, and that can affect the binder your lender is waiting on.
Liability is the other piece that has nothing to do with the 11 perils but sits in every standard policy. If someone gets hurt on your property, that's a different coverage section entirely, with its own limit separate from your dwelling and personal property numbers. Your declarations page lists it on its own line. It's worth a glance now, since it's easy to assume it scales with the rest of the policy when it's set independently.
What these perils leave out, and why it matters before closing
Water damage is where this list trips people up. Fire, windstorm, theft, the 11 perils cover plenty, but a pipe bursting under your kitchen sink isn't on it, and neither is water backing up through a sewer line. Most policies, including HO-3, do cover sudden water damage from a burst pipe, but that's a separate line from this named-peril list and it comes with its own exclusions. Gradual leaks, the kind that rot a subfloor over months, are usually not covered no matter what form you have. If the house you're buying has an older water heater or visible plumbing, ask about this specifically rather than assuming it's bundled in.
Earth movement is excluded almost everywhere, and that covers more than earthquakes. Sinkholes, landslides, and soil settling around a foundation usually fall under the same exclusion. Some states require insurers to offer sinkhole coverage separately, so if you're buying in an area known for it, that's worth asking about before closing rather than after a crack shows up in the foundation.
Maintenance problems are never a peril, basic or otherwise. A roof that fails because it's twenty years old, mold that grows because humidity sat unchecked, termite damage, these are treated as the owner's responsibility to prevent, not something insurance steps in for. This matters most at closing because a home inspection might flag a roof near the end of its life. If that's the case, some insurers will want it replaced or will adjust coverage accordingly, and that can affect the binder your lender is waiting on.
Liability is the other piece that has nothing to do with the 11 perils but sits in every standard policy. If someone gets hurt on your property, that's a different coverage section entirely, with its own limit separate from your dwelling and personal property numbers. Your declarations page lists it on its own line. It's worth a glance now, since it's easy to assume it scales with the rest of the policy when it's set independently.
Before you sign
Pull up your declarations page and check the dwelling coverage against what rebuilding your house would actually cost, not the purchase price. Confirm the liability limit too, since it's set on its own line.
