27 Sep Ordinance and Law Coverage

Did you know that, following a major disaster, some of your rebuilding expenses may not be covered by your property insurance? The costs of demolishing an undamaged portion of a building or of improving a structure to bring it up to code are specifically excluded under most property policies. Yet often, building codes and ordinances require that such measures be taken to bring a building into compliance with current law.

Buildings are constructed to meet or exceed the codes in effect at the time of their construction. But as buildings age, those codes often become obsolete as construction standards change in an ongoing effort to improve the fire safety, structural integrity, and energy efficiency of buildings. Enforcement of these new standards is triggered when an insured building experiences a covered loss, such as a fire or hurricane, and the structure must be rebuilt according to current, and stricter, codes. So how do you protect yourself from the burden of financing the additional costs of bringing your structure up to code? By adding Ordinance and Law Coverage to your current property insurance. Ordinance and Law insurance consists of three separate coverages: 1) loss to the undamaged portion of the building; 2) increased demolition costs; and 3) increased costs of construction. To learn more about Ordinance and Law Coverage and the benefits of adding this valuable coverage to your current property policy, please contact our office.