Does homeowners insurance cover mold? When it's covered and when it isn't

When is mold covered?

Mold itself is not a peril on a homeowners policy. It is covered, when it is covered at all, as damage that follows a peril the policy does cover. The usual examples:

• A pipe bursts behind a wall and mold grows before anyone notices the water.
• A washing machine hose splits and soaks the floor, and mold appears while it dries.
• Firefighters soak the house putting out a fire.
• A storm tears off part of the roof and rain gets into the attic.

In each case the water came from something sudden and accidental. The insurer will want to know when it started, when you found it and what you did next, because speed is part of the bargain.

When isn't mold covered?

• A slow drip under a sink or around a toilet that went on for months.
• Damp from humidity, poor ventilation or condensation on cold walls.
• Mold after a flood. Standard homeowners policies exclude flood, and flood policies limit mold to what you couldn't have prevented.
• Mold that spread because a leak was known and not fixed.
• Mold in a crawl space or basement from groundwater seeping in.

Insurers treat these as upkeep. The line they draw is between water that arrived all at once and moisture that built up over time, and the mold looks the same either way. That is why a plumber's note on what failed, and when, matters so much.

Mold limits in your policy

Many policies set a sublimit for mold, sometimes called fungi or microbes, even when the cause is covered. Figures between $1,000 and $10,000 are common, and some policies exclude mold entirely. The limit usually covers testing, removal and the repairs it takes to reach the mold, all together.

If you live somewhere damp, check your policy for a mold endorsement that raises the limit. It is usually cheap compared with what remediation costs.

What to do if you find mold

1. Find and stop the water source if you can. Mold can't be fixed while it's still wet.
2. Photograph the mold and the source of the water before anything is cleaned or cut out.
3. Report it to your insurer the same day, and say what caused the water if you know.
4. Dry the area with fans and a dehumidifier, and keep receipts for anything you rent or buy.
5. Don't scrub or tear out large patches yourself. The EPA suggests getting professional help for patches bigger than about ten square feet.
6. Ask your adjuster whether they want a mold test before any removal starts.

Mold can start within a day or two of a leak. A claim reported in the first week, with photos of a fresh leak, is far easier to get paid than one reported after the walls have turned black.

Belongings damaged by mold

Soft, porous things often can't be saved once mold has grown into them: mattresses, upholstered furniture, rugs, cardboard boxes, books and some clothes. Hard surfaces such as metal and glass can usually be cleaned. Your deductible and the mold limit apply to belongings too, so check your policy before you throw anything out.

Photograph each item before it goes, and list it with what it would cost to replace today. Our guide to making a home inventory list after a loss covers how to rebuild that list when you can't remember everything that was stored in a damp basement.

What mold removal involves

A remediation company usually starts by finding where the moisture is, often with a moisture meter or a thermal camera. They seal off the area so spores don't spread, run air scrubbers, remove the moldy drywall, insulation or flooring, clean the framing, and dry everything before anything is rebuilt. Some insurers want an air or surface test before and after, to show the work was needed and that it worked.

Get a written scope from the company before work starts and send it to your adjuster. If the adjuster wants their own company or a second estimate, ask them to say so in writing so the job doesn't stall while the mold keeps growing.

Can you add mold cover?

Many insurers sell an endorsement that raises the mold limit or adds cover for mold from causes the base policy leaves out. Ask your agent what it costs and what it still excludes, since some only raise the limit without widening what counts.

Where Indemnia helps

Indemnia lists the belongings you photograph before they go to the curb, with today's price for each, and finds the original purchases in your email receipts, so the contents side of a mold claim doesn't wait on your memory.