Even the insurance industry is beginning to recognize green building methods..

ISO announced that it has filed the industry's first standard coverage option for commercial property owners interested in rebuilding damaged property with green alternatives

There are three major components of the new coverage:

-Green upgrade coverage will change existing replacement-cost coverage by providing an additional limit of insurance to address loss settlement of damaged property that use more energy efficient and environmentally preferable materials, products, or methods when it comes to design or construction in accordance with Environmental design(LEED program) or Energy Star

-The second is related to expense coverage, which provides an additional limit of insurance to be applied to expenses related to green upgrades. (Example.. recycling costs, such as the reuse or salvage of building materials or contents and related extraction and transportation expenses.)

- The third is within the business interruption coverage form which extends the period of restoration. This takes into account that using green standards may take longer than is customary with ordinary construction methods and materials.

We have not seen how this form is going to be used or priced as it was just introduced, but it is interesting to see how the insurance industry is also getting in on the action with regards to green building techniques.

Homeowners Insurance

More than half of homeowners say they know very little about their home insurance policies and coverages, according to a survey.

Some 54 percent of all homeowners surveyed admitted to knowing "not much at all" about their homeowners policies. One of the most poorly understood aspects of homeowners insurance is actual coverage. Homeowners insurance policies can vary in types of coverage but a standard home insurance policy typically covers dwelling, contents, other structures, medical payments, liability, and loss of use.

Some of the most dangerous aspects homeowners often ignore on their policies are replacement value, deductibles and covered losses. These are the exact reason that homeowners NEED to contact an experienced independent insurance agency like THE MISNER AGENCY. We take the time to explain the coverages that we are quoting and make time to answer the insureds questions. We also represent various insurance companies which allows us to go beyond the basics and offer some extended coverages to meet individual homeowners needs.