Answers to your home insurance questions

What coverage is there for my in-home business and office equipment?

With the Homeowners, Condominium, Renter, and Mobilehome policies, equipment for business use is covered to the policy limit of $2,500. With the Premier Homeowners or Premier Condominium policies, the equipment is covered to the policy limit of $5,000.

With all policies, any equipment used away from the home for business purposes has a policy limit of $1,000. The policies' liability coverage doesn't include business exposure.

You can add endorsements to the basic policy or purchase a business owner's policy to get coverage for the equipment and liability.

You and your neighbor should both file a claim with your own insurers. The policy's liability section may provide coverage if you've been negligent in taking care of the tree, and that negligence contributed to the tree falling.

The policy will provide coverage for the damage to your home. Debris-removal coverage also will be available, up to $2,000, since the tree damaged a covered structure.

The Liability and Medical Payments coverage protects you anywhere in the world. For example, if you're skiing in Colorado and you crash into someone, break his or her leg, and are found legally liable, your Liability and Medical Payments coverage will extend to protect you.

The policy does provide coverage for damage from freezing pipes. If, however, the home is vacant, unoccupied, or under construction, there’s only coverage if you’ve taken care to heat the home or shut off the water and drain the system.

Yes, the same coverages that protect your belongings at home protect them while you are away on vacation.

Yes, you receive a discount on both your home and auto policies if you insure your home and auto with PEMCO. Additional discounts may be available if you also insure your boat or rental property with us.

Renter, condo, and homeowner policies do not cover damage caused by earthquakes. Earthquake is a unique risk that stands apart from other types of losses. They happen infrequently and vary greatly in severity.

We understand the need for this important coverage, which is why our professionals at PEMCO Agency can help you secure a quote with a specialized earthquake insurance carrier. If you'd like more information or a quote for earthquake insurance, please call 1-800-467-3626 to speak with PEMCO Agency today.

A home's assessed value is the county's measure of the value of both the home and land, for tax purposes. The assessor needs to know how much everything is worth to accurately calculate your property-tax bill.

Your insurance policy often reflects a different figure from an assessed or appraised value. Your home is being insured for its replacement cost – that is, the cost to rebuild the home.

An assessed or appraised value will adjust for depreciation, reducing your home's value due to age and wear and tear. Assessed values often are based on data from the prior year which, when combined with depreciation, will be a poor gauge of the home's reconstruction cost. An appraisal takes into account depreciation and other market factors as well, so that isn't a good guide for the replacement cost either.

Your insurance policy factors in labor and material costs, the age of the structure, geography, and ease of access to the site when calculating the replacement cost.

While most insurance coverage kicks in only after a direct loss, your policy's Loss of Use provision can be triggered even without damage to your home if the authorities order a wildfire evacuation. The relevant coverage is an Additional Living Expense benefit. The duration of this benefit is limited when it's triggered by an evacuation order, so once you've reached a safe location, please take a moment to call us (1-800-467-3626) about the situation while awaiting the "All clear!" from authorities.