When a property insurance policy is written on a Broad form, you only receive coverage for your items if they are damaged by a covered cause of loss listed on your insurance policy. These are classed into 15 causes of loss:

1. Fire or lightning
2. Explosion
3. Smoke
4. Falling objects
5. Impact by aircraft, spacecraft or land vehicle,
6. Riot
7. Vandalism or malicious acts
8. Water escape, rupture, or freezing
9. Windstorm or hail
10. Breakage of glass
11. Transportation
12. Theft including damage caused by attempted theft
13. Weight of ice, snow or sleet
14. Collapse of a building or any part of a building
15. Electricity

If the damage to your home is caused by something other than those 15 things, there will be no insurance coverage. In addition, it is important to check your policy for the definition of those 15 causes of loss because the insurance company can limit or exclude how the insurance applies. For example, if your home is damaged because you didn’t maintain your sprinkler system properly there would be no coverage; however, if a fire causes the sprinkler system to go off, the policy would pay to repair the damage caused by the sprinkler.

Note that with Broad forms the insurance company has the duty to specifically include coverage. If it’s not included on the list, it’s not covered.

Another common property insurance form is the Comprehensive form, formerly referred to as “all risk.” When a property policy is written on a comprehensive form, the insurance company has a duty to specifically exclude coverage. Simply put, if the insurance company does not exclude coverage in writing, the damage to your property will be paid for. There are many common exclusions, for example: government action, nuclear hazard, war and military action, water damage (e.g. flood), fungus, and pollution. At the end of the day, however, the comprehensive form gives you much more comprehensive insurance protection than the broad forms.

Insurance policies do not cover everything. Certain situations, perils and property are excluded which are either classified as uninsurable, such as flooding or nuclear accidents, or which are covered under more specialized policies, (e.g. a homeowners policy will not cover an automobile or an aircraft). Coverage for perils or property that is normally excluded by the policy can sometimes be added to a policy in the form of an endorsement or floater.

Your homeowners policy may not cover damage caused by sewer back-up. It is important to read your policy wordings to be aware of any restrictions and limitations pertaining to water damage. In many cases additional coverage for sewer backup can be added to your policy for an additional premium. Premiums and eligibility are often dependant on the area in which you live as well as sewer backup protection in place in your home.