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What does homeowners insurance cover?

Homeowners insurance helps protect more than just your home. It covers your stuff and helps protect your finances from unexpected and costly events.

If you own and live in your house, you can benefit from homeowners insurance.

Protection for your property

Your home

Your dwelling limit is the most we'll pay to rebuild your home if it's damaged or destroyed by something covered by your policy. This includes fires, most weather-related events and accidental water damage.

Other parts of your property

This can help pay for covered damage to things like fences, detached garages, storage sheds, swimming pools and driveways.

Your stuff

This helps cover your furniture, clothes, electronics and other things you own. It could also cover your stuff if it gets damaged in storage or while you travel.

Protection for your finances

Claims against you

If you're liable for someone's injury or damage to their property, homeowners coverage may help protect you and cover your legal costs.

Medical payments to others

Costs for things like X-rays or ER visits for people injured on your property can add up. This may help cover medical payments for their injuries no matter who's at fault, including some accidents that happen away from your property.

Temporary living expenses

If a covered event leaves your home unlivable, this helps pay for temporary housing, food, transportation, storage, pet boarding and more. Learn more about loss of use coverage.

Damage to shared property

If shared property like a community clubhouse gets damaged, your homeowners association may require you to pitch in for repairs. This loss assessment coverage could help pay your part of the repair bill.

Identity theft‍ ‍ See note 1

Our standard homeowners policy includes up to $5,000 of identity theft coverage. This can help pay for services to recover your identity.

Repair or replace old stuff at today’s cost.

Your policy covers your belongings and some of your home’s building materials at current value with no depreciation.‍ ‍ See note 2

That means, if your stuff gets damaged in a covered event, we’ll pay the cost to repair it, or we may replace it with a new item valued up to your policy limits. You just pay your deductible.

Special coverage for military

Active-duty and active Reserve members won't pay a deductible on a covered loss for personally owned military gear and clothing.

This can include uniforms, insignia, flight cases, headsets and body armor.‍ ‍ See note 3

Get wildfire response at no extra cost.

The USAA Wildfire Response Program could help protect your home from active wildfires. Our providers monitor for threats and send certified firefighters to help lessen or prevent losses.

You'll need to have an active USAA Homeowners or Rental Property Insurance policy. If your home is located in a state covered by the program and it's an eligible type of dwelling, we'll automatically enroll you.

Learn about our wildfire program

Need more protection? You have options.

You can add these to your homeowners policy if they fit your needs. Keep in mind that this may raise your premium.

Home protector

This coverage offers 25%‍ ‍ See note 4 more toward your limits for the dwelling and other structures.

Water backup

This includes damage from water that overflows from a sump pump or backs up through the plumbing from outside the home.

Earthquake

This helps to protect your home and your things when they're damaged by an earthquake, shock wave or tremor.‍ ‍ See note 5

Personal injury

This can help if you're accused of damaging someone's reputation with libel, slander, defamation of character or other harmful actions.

Home sharing

If you share, exchange or rent your home for less than a month, home sharing coverage‍ ‍ See note 6 offers more protection for personal liability and your stuff. To help cover a home you rent to long-term tenants, you may need landlord insurance.

Extra protection for electronics

Home and renters policies cover losses like theft, vandalism, fires and most weather-related damage. Our electronics coverage options offer protection for more common accidents.‍ ‍ See note 7

So if you accidentally damage or lose your laptop, we'll help pay to repair or replace it up to your coverage limit.

Learn about electronics coverage

Other policies to help protect your home and property

Flood insurance

Most standard homeowners policies don't cover floods. You may want to consider a flood policy, even if you don’t live in a flood-prone area.

Learn about flood insurance

Umbrella insurance

An umbrella policy can pick up where your homeowners liability coverage leaves off and help you pay for the remainder of a claim that exceeds its limits.

Learn about umbrella insurance

Valuable Personal Property insurance

Our Valuable Personal Property, or VPP, policy provides more protection for items like jewelry, smartwatches, guns, cameras, musical instruments and more without a deductible.

Learn about VPP insurance

Read more about homeowners insurance.

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Related footnotes:

  1. IN PENNSYLVANIA, WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO REFUSE TO QUOTE ANY INDIVIDUAL A PREMIUM RATE FOR THE INSURANCE ADVERTISED HEREIN.

Related footnotes:

  1. Your homeowner's policy automatically includes up to $5,000 of identity theft coverage. ID theft coverage not available in North Carolina. Read your United Services Automobile Association (USAA) policy for details.

  2. With replacement cost coverage, at our option, subject to policy limits and policy deductible, if you actually replace the property we will pay you the lesser of our cost to restore, repair or replace the damaged property or the amount you actually spent to restore, repair or replace the property. Coverage applies to damage or loss due to events listed in your policy.

  3. No deductible will be applied for a covered loss to your military uniforms or military equipment while you are on active or reserve duty.

  4. Additional 25% coverage applies to your dwelling only, not its contents. To qualify for this coverage, dwelling must be insured for a minimum of 95% of estimated rebuild cost. Certain restrictions apply.

  5. For the state of Washington, earthquake insurance is available through USAA Insurance Agency.

  6. Coverage and availability restrictions apply and are subject to change. Not available in all states.

  7. All coverages may not be available in all locations.

Related footnotes:

  1. Coverage descriptions are brief and subject to the terms and conditions of your insurance policy. Read your insurance policy for details. Applications subject to underwriting.

  2. The coverage examples or scenarios included above are intended to show the types of situations that may result in claims. They shouldn’t be compared to an actual claim. Whether or to what extent a particular loss is covered depends on the facts and circumstances of the loss, the terms, and conditions of the policy as issued and applicable law.

  3. Membership eligibility and product restrictions apply and are subject to change.

  4. The National Flood Insurance Program is not underwritten by United Services Automobile Association (USAA) or its affiliates based in San Antonio, Texas, and is provided by USAA General Indemnity Company (USAA-GIC), through an arrangement with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The Federal government has financial responsibility for underwriting losses. The National Flood Insurance Program USAA-GIC is not available in Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico or overseas.

    The typical homeowners or rental property insurance policy doesn't include flood coverage, and in some locations, you may also need to obtain a wind-only insurance policy. Flood insurance can be purchased separately through the National Flood Insurance Program. The maximum limits of coverage available on the federal flood policy for residences are $250,000 on the building and $100,000 on contents. If you need additional flood insurance coverage beyond these amounts, you can contact USAA Insurance Agency which works with other insurance companies that provide excess flood coverage. Private flood coverage is not affiliated with the National Flood Insurance Program.

  5. Property and casualty insurance underwritten by United Services Automobile Association (USAA), USAA Casualty Insurance Company, USAA General Indemnity Company, Garrison Property and Casualty Insurance Company, NOBLR Reciprocal Exchange, based in San Antonio, Texas; USAA EU DAC (Europe), and USAA S.A. UK Branch (pending cancellation to align with the pending branch authorization application) and is available only to persons eligible for property and casualty group membership. Each company has sole financial responsibility for its own products.

    Coverages subject to the terms and conditions of the policy.

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