According to an article on Dailyherald.com “Claims from backed-up sewage can run as high as $10,000 to $20,000 per incident, says Loretta Worters, a spokeswoman for the Insurance Information Institute, a trade group.”
Amazingly adding a sewer-backup rider to a homeowners’ policy is around “$40 to $50 a year for $5,000 worth of coverage.” Even though the cost of adding the rider is minimal “only about 20 percent of homeowner policies have the additional coverage for sewer backup.”
Some recommended steps to take when dealing with potential sewer-backup.
"Avoid putting grease, paper towels, diapers and other refuse in toilets or sinks to prevent clogs in pipes connecting your home to the city sanitary main.
Don't connect sump pumps, French drains or other flood-control systems to city sanitary mains, which is typically illegal. Have a plumber remove illegal connections.
Install a backflow-prevention device. The cost ranges from about $500 to $5,000 plus installation, depending on the type of plumbing in the building and valve required."
Is this type of incident never covered by homeowners insurance? It sounds horrible, and I can only imagine the costs that it leads to when there is a problem. We recently just had some plumbing work done on that system, and it isn't cheap! Still, nobody wants sewage in the house, let's be honest. It's worth the money.
Jerry
www.leads4insurance.com
Posted by: Jerry | May 14, 2007 9:02 PM | Permalink to Comment