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Have a Sump Pump or Grinder Pump? Get Sewer Insurance.
8/12/2020 (Permalink)
Do you have sewer backup insurance?
What kind of relationship do you have with your home insurance provider? Is your home insurance adequate or is it the bare minimum to check the list that you have insurance? When you become a homeowner, it’s required to have insurance and after putting a large sum of money on a house, you may have unknowingly cheated yourself with getting the basic package. In reality, the basic coverage most likely will not cover the total cost of home damage. SERVPRO doesn’t sell insurance but we understand the importance of it especially as a restoration business that receives many calls about home-related disasters. Frankly, restoration services are costly and not many have the means to pay out of pocket. We want to encourage you to discover more about your home coverage and ask more questions.
One insurance coverage that your insurance agent may not have mentioned is a sewer line coverage.
So why would you need a sewer line coverage? Do you know that it’s possible that the line in which carries all the nasty water from your toilet, sink, and shower to wherever the city sends it, can actually come back inside your home? Yep. You might have “black” water (essentially feces water) in your bathtub. “Ew” is right. We often get these types of losses after a heavy storm but there are several reasons it could happen. Here are 3 common reasons sewer back up occurs.
- A clog in the sewer lines. For example, Tree roots that grow in sewer pipes.
- A damaged sewer pipe like a crack or corrosion.
- Too much water inside the sewer lines.
Don’t have a sump pump? How about a Sewage Ejector (Grinder Pump)?
Most people are familiar with a sump pump but some of you may not know about your sewage ejector. We heard from our insurance friends that homeowners may opt-out of a sewer line coverage because they don’t have a floor drain or sump pump in their basement. Well, if you have a toilet in your basement and the city’s sewage line is above the sewer pipes, you may still have to consider it since you have an ejector pump system. It is the mechanical equipment that grinds solids and pumps the sludgy wastewater upward into the city’s main sewer line. The pump may malfunction if you flush down items that are not meant for a toilet or it can wear down over time. You will not know there’s a clog or issue until it’s too late. It’s good to consider sewer insurance coverage and maintenance check-ups on such equipment.