Can Homeowners Insurance Cover Water Leakage?

Insurers pay for losses from leaks, but only if you've been responsible about maintaining your plumbing. If the adjuster discovers you knew for years that the pipe was rusting apart but didn't fix it, the odds aren't in your favor. If you find a roof leak and don't take steps to protect your furniture -- covering chairs, rolling up carpet, covering the roof with tarpaulin -- the insurer's unlikely to pay for the post-discovery damage.

If you're hoping to, say, get the roof leak repaired along with the chair it leaked on, you may be out of luck. Insurance pays if leaks come from sudden damage, such as a tree falling on your roof or your pipes freezing. It doesn't pay out for repairs if your house is just old and wearing down. If there's a long-term leak and you didn't see it because it's buried behind an appliance, that damage probably isn't covered either.

Most policies say flat-out that they won't cover mold damage. If, say, you discover heavy mold growing in your laundry room because of a seemingly minor leak, the cost of cleanup falls on you. If your pipe bursts and starts some mold growing, it's a sudden-damage case and your insurer may pay to purge the mold. Policies that do cover mold usually offer between $1,000 and $10,000 worth of remediation and clean-up.

Maintenance isn't just necessary to preserve your coverage, it's in your own self-interest. Even if your company does pay out, it won't cover your deductible, so you'll lose some money. If anything you're sentimental about gets ruined, money won't bring your treasures back. Cleaning regularly and checking behind appliances can save you time, stress and grief. Having someone inspect window frames and your roof is also a good precaution to take.