Many people who have a home business and use a laptop get confused about whether that laptop is covered under a homeowners policy. There isn’t always a direct answer affirmatively or negatively, because it depends on certain circumstances. Take a look at what homeowners insurance generally covers and whether your laptop can still be covered by your insurance (both at home and away from home) if you at least use it for personal business.
The Better Side to Homeowners Insurance on Laptops
If you have a laptop that you’re using for strictly personal reasons, most damage incurred to it will be covered under your homeowners insurance. This includes any theft in your home or if the laptop is stolen when you’re out and about. Keep in mind, though, that all the data you have on the laptop can’t be replaced by your insurance policy. That’s going to be up to you and requires you to purchase a commercial backup system.
What happens if you’re using that laptop as a combination of personal and business use? Things might get a little complicated, despite the possibility your homeowners insurance will still cover you.
The Added Fees and Other Risks for Business Coverage
Generally, homeowners insurance will cover up to $250 in damages if you use the laptop for business use. Yes, that’s a very paltry amount and why you’ll have to consider other options. One of those is asking your homeowners policy if they provide business coverage. Many insurance companies do, though it could make your premiums much higher per month.
Under normal coverage for personal use, you may have to pay more for laptop protection away from home. Because insurance companies are obsessed with statistics, they might charge you more if you live in an area that’s known for higher crime levels. It’s not much different from car insurance policies charging men higher rates than women simply because statistics say men are higher risk.
Which is More Expensive: Insurance or Buying a New Laptop?
If you happen to have an overly expensive laptop, it might be worth your while to think more seriously about any extra insurance coverage you place on it. Individual business insurance is always possible if you need to be thoroughly covered in the event of a disaster. Regardless, sometimes it’s cheaper to just replace the laptop after a set amount of years rather than adding extra coverage for certain protections. A computer that dies due to being too old isn’t covered by your insurance policy anyway.
In general, buying insurance for anything is now a balancing act of deciding what’s worth protecting and what isn’t. With premiums rising for all insurance and cheaper laptops becoming available, it’s time for you to think intelligently about your laptop coverage.