Home insurance endorsements, from sewer backup to valuables

A standard homeowners policy covers a set list of risks with set limits. An endorsement changes that list. Most companies offer endorsements, or policy add-ons, that increase a coverage or add one. Any coverage added or increased outside the basic policy appears in its own section of the declarations page.

Sewer or drain backup

Water that comes up through a floor drain or a toilet from a backed-up sewer line is treated differently from a burst pipe. Sewer or drain backup coverage is one of the endorsements companies commonly offer.

A backup endorsement is not flood insurance. Flood is excluded from most home policies and is covered by a separate policy.

Code upgrades

One common endorsement pays the extra construction or repair costs of meeting local building codes. Another pays extra construction costs when the policy doesn't pay enough to rebuild the home.

Jewelry, art and other valuables

Belongings are covered, but some categories carry their own lower limits. Home policies limit what they'll pay for things like jewelry and art. Endorsements for jewelry, fine arts and electronics raise those limits.

Earthquake

Earthquake is typically excluded from homeowners policies. An endorsement for earthquake damage is one way to add it.

Mold

Some companies also offer an endorsement for mold.

Read each endorsement's limit

Each endorsement on the declarations page carries a limit. The declarations page shows each one beside the coverage it changes.

An annotated example

What to do next

Find the endorsements section of your declarations page and list each one with its limit. Ask your insurer or agent what any endorsement on the list covers, because each company writes its own. Keep the list with the policy, and read it again at renewal.