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Planning a home renovation can be involved. There are many decisions to make, vendors to coordinate with, items that need to be ordered and arrangements to be made to get the house prepared for the work to begin.
One additional, important component to the planning should include taking the proper precautions to minimize any damage or injuries during the construction. Here are 5 tips to better protect your home and yourself when planning a renovation:
Make sure your contractor’s agreement includes language that requires the contractor to maintain Commercial General Liability (CGL) insurance as well as Workers’ Compensation (WC) coverage. This provides protection in the event that someone gets hurt on site.
Construction sites are considered to be an attractive nuisance. This means that there is a potentially dangerous condition at the property. In order to protect the property from having unwanted visitors, it is recommended that proper fencing and night lighting be installed.
The risk of loss increases exponentially during construction. There are flammable materials on site that can combust and the work itself is hazardous, which can cause personal injury to workers and/or visitors. It is important to do the following:
Do not allow smoking on site.
Make sure flammable materials are safely stored each evening.
Someone should be responsible for on site clean up at the end of each day.
As soon as the home is enclosed have a central station alarm installed to prevent fire loss.
Make sure your homeowners coverage and personal liability/umbrella limits are adequate.
Most homeowners insurance policies require you to notify your insurance company when you are doing major work. In order to make sure you do not have a gap in coverage, it is essential to contact your broker.
Take pictures before, during and after the project and keep track of expenditures, including permanently installed items and other personal property, to make it simpler to update your insurance accordingly and have a record of what was there.