If you need to have your home insured, an insurance home surveyor should be the first person you contact. Before you dial the number listed under your telephone directory for insurance home surveyors, there are some important things you need to know.
What is an insurance home surveyor? Each insurance surveyor is assigned to inspect a specific item with a variety of tools. They will then compile the data and make any recommendations. With the survey report as a strong base for its decision, the insurance company will decide whether to offer insurance to the owner or applicant.
When you are looking for an insurance company to survey your home, make sure they specialize in home surveys. Not buildings, ships, and airplanes. While they may have the same documents to prove their profession, not all will be skilled in home surveying.
Insurance Home Surveyors: What are their responsibilities?
You may need to work with multiple insurance home surveyors to inspect a single home. Not all will be able to offer the same expertise. The following four areas are important for an insurance home inspector:
Fire and Perils – An insurance home surveyor must know how to determine if a home is well-built and has adequate protection against fire. This report may also be affected by how a home’s management is managed. Habitually negligent homeowners can make their home more vulnerable to a fiery accident, even though it is structurally sound.
Accidents and Liability: An insurance home surveyor must determine whether the house is a risk to its residents and visitors. If any electrical components or machineries are found in the house, they must be surveyed.
Engineering – A home surveyor for insurance must conduct an engineering survey to determine if a portion of your house will be used for industrial purposes.
Burglary and Theft- Finally, and this is more important if the house is in an area with a high crime rate, an insurance home surveyor will need to determine what security measures have been taken and whether they are adequate.
An insurance company, or you, may also ask for the following services:
Termite Inspection – This is a very dangerous issue with older homes. Even though it is not required by your insurance company you should still ask your home surveyor to conduct it. Termites, no matter how small, can still destroy your home in one hit.
Property Survey – This is particularly important for homes that are located in open areas or where there are no boundaries. A property survey will verify that the house to be insure is consistent with the property title description.
Tips for choosing an insurance home surveyor
The insurance company that you are transacting with will usually reserve the right of choosing and assigning an insurance home surveyor to you. You can still get a second opinion by having your own home surveyor to help you compare notes and avoid any collusion between the surveyors and the insurance company.
A home surveyor who is qualified in insurance will be able to provide all-round expertise. This will allow you to avoid having to hire multiple people for the same home. You should also ensure that they have the appropriate qualifications. For example, an engineer home surveyor must hold an engineering degree in order to do his job properly.
Finally, make sure you work with an insurance home inspector that you can trust and talk to easily.
