Home Office, Big Risks: How Remote Work Changes Home Insurance Needs 

Those who can work remotely from their own homes can save money in several ways. Fuel bills and other transportation costs go down, the wardrobe is “come as you are” cheap, and meals prepared in your own kitchen cost less than lunch at a restaurant. 

But there’s one area that could actually prove costlier for remote workers than for those who use a more traditional workplace setting. Your homeowners insurance might not cover your needs adequately. 

Does your home insurance cover your home office? If not, what do you need in the form of remote work home insurance? 

The New Normal: More Americans Are Working from Home 

This phenomenon was already in development with cloud-based technology that enables home-bound workers to look at the same screen and work alongside those in the office or on the other side of the world. But it was COVID-19 that made remote work more common. 

In the years since COVID left the headlines, some corporations have clawed back remote work availability, but it’s still quite common. Your homeowners policy, however, might not have caught up with the new reality. That’s the challenge. 

How Remote Work Changes Home Usage and Risk Exposure 

Your homeowners policy was not designed to cover a small plant, warehouse, or office. Homes and workplaces are two different beasts. The risks are different. As a result, if you try to file a claim for a business-related loss that took place in your residence, there are certain limitations and exclusions that can hurt your wallet. Working from home comes with insurance considerations. 

Here are the leading protections you get in a homeowners insurance policy. Spoiler alert: Not all of the following benefits will be there if your home is also your workplace. 

Understanding What Your Standard Homeowners Insurance Policy Covers 

Your typical homeowners policy financially protects the structure of your home, your property, and your possessions. You’re covered for loss from theft, vandalism, fire, smoke, internal flooding, most weather events, and other sources of damage or loss. 

Even possessions not stored in your home are covered. For instance, if property is lost or damaged while kept in your garage, car trunk, or even an off-site storage facility, you can make a claim on your homeowners policy. 

You’re also covered for liability. That comes into play if a visitor is injured on your property or if the possessions of others are damaged and you or a family member is found to be responsible. That could cover anything from a fallen limb from one of your trees damaging a neighbor’s garage to your kids accidentally hitting a baseball through a neighbor’s window. Your liability coverage will also pay legal and court costs in such cases. 

And finally, your policy will likely provide benefits if you have to relocate to temporary housing after a fire or other event that leaves your home unavailable for an extended period. 

What’s Not Covered When You Work from Home? 

So what’s the catch? If you’re not melting steel in your home, your business probably won’t start a fire. 

While that’s probably true, your expensive office equipment might be at financial risk if you have a fire for any reason. While your standard homeowners policy will cover a couple of family laptops, if your office equipment inventory is much more extensive and you lose costly office furniture and a room with file cabinets and other office gear, your standard policy might not apply — or could put limitations on your claim that don’t fully cover the true cost of replacing your office set-up. 

Do clients or customers visit your home? If that happens on even an occasional basis, and they get injured — maybe they slip on an icy sidewalk or trip on a bunched-up rug — your liability coverage might offer little or no protection. Then, if you’re sued or your most important client needs medical care, the payment might come out of your own pocket. 

What about inventory? Do you — even on a limited basis — keep your product offering in your home, car, or off-site storage facility? While, as previously mentioned, your homeowners policy easily covers your personal belongings in such circumstances, your business-related property most likely can’t be claimed for theft, destruction, or vandalism. 

If you have a lot of inventory or get business-related goods regularly shipped to your home, it could get expensive and even crippling to your business if you suffer a loss. 

Should You Consider Home Business Endorsements? 

Yes! Simply because your home insurance remote work coverage might be inadequate. But first, a brief definition. An insurance endorsement, sometimes also called a policy add-on, is additional coverage, in writing, to your existing policy. 

In this case, you and your insurance advisor would review what your homeowners policy already covers. They’ll examine how you do business and figure out possible shortcomings in the form of specific risks you might have and how you can avert them. Your agent can then price out endorsements that will make your standard policy work better in managing those remote-work risks. 

In some cases, your insurance agent might recommend the purchase of one or more lines of business insurance based on your specific risk profile. 

Protect Your Workspace and Peace of Mind–Talk to an Acceptance Agent 

We can help you update your homeowners insurance for remote work. Your Acceptance Insurance agent will sit down with you, ask pertinent questions, and get a better idea of whether you need additional coverage — or your homeowners policy is a good fit for what you do from home. 

If business insurance is a better fit, we might also bring that into the discussion. 

Your Acceptance agent is an independent insurance broker. That means they have access to multiple lines of coverage, not just the product line of one insurance company. As a result, they can go shopping on your behalf for the most appropriate coverage or the most affordable endorsements to give your home-based company maximum financial protection. 

Your agent can also show you how you can further reduce what you pay for coverage by taking advantage of multiple insurance discounts that you can easily access. This might include bundling your auto and homeowners insurance coverage for reduced rates. 

Get the ball rolling. Just call us at (877) 405-7102 or get a quick quote online. You can also find an Acceptance Insurance office near you.