Is State Farm home insurance an HO3 or HO5?

Question

State Farm says its BroadForm policy - do you know if is this really an HO3 or HO5 (guess its all Open Perils on Personal Property as well)?

Ram Su · Answer

Thanks @Jason Bott that helps. AMFAM is the one that says all perils on their elite package (but it was $150 higher).. so there is $150 difference.. may be for a peace of mind, I shouldn’t worry about $150 higher one

Jason Bott · Answer

@Ram Su the issue with AM Fam and SF is they each have their own unique policies that are not standard to the rest of the marektplace.  So unless I can get a copy, I can only assume what the differences are between the 2 options.

A short answer to your question is,

Broad form lists which perils ARE covered - Fire, Lightning, Storm, etc.  So if you have a claim from a Peril that's not listed in the policy, you don't have coverage.

Special/All Perils - Covers all losses except the Perils specifically listed as Exclusions.  So 100% of all the funky claims you could ever come up with are covered, unless they are specifically listed as Exclusions.

If the premium is identical, you always go with Special/All Perils

Ram Su · Answer

@Jason Bott thanks. I asked the State Farm agent if it’s HO5, but he says it’s not HO5 but broadform. He says State Farm has only one kind of policy and it’s broad form (he never says it’s an HO5). But AMFAM clearly say it’s a HO5 policy. Now wondering which way should I go? Do you know what broadform is?

Jason Bott · Answer

@Ram Su I would urge you to have the agent quantify "Better".  "Better" is not insurance jargon.  Sounds like lazy consulting / ignorance from my perspective.

I was an agent for the company you are referring 14 years ago.  Although there may be a slight difference from 1 HO5 to the other, the policies are most likely 99.9% the same.

If that 0.1% difference does exist, that agent should be able to explain what that coverage is and how it benefits you when you have a claim.

Ram Su · Answer

Yes this will be a house that I occupy, I am in a dilema whether to believe what Statefarm says “our policy is better than an HO5”

Derek Lacy · Answer

first off. Will this be a house you occupy?

Second from slim to most it goes [1,2,3,5]. 4 is “renters”; 6 is condo, 8 is modified value.

On an owner occupied, nothing broader than a 5 unless endorsed.

Ram Su · Answer

@Derek Lacy so does that mean it’s has lesser coverage than a HO5. Amfam says they will give me a HO5 and State Farm says their broad form is better than HO5 and will cover everything? So is statefarm better then?