Insuring a home spa? Know that a hot tub is not like a pool
Coverage Q&A: Insured homeowners need to know that hot tubs come with risks that may not be covered.
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Question: We have a client who has an HO3 policy — form HO 00 03 04 91. Unknown to the insured, the hot tub had a malfunction of the pump/heater this winter. This caused the pipes and the hot tub to freeze. The hot tub cracked. Under the above HO3 form, can you determine if there is coverage for this loss?
— Massachusetts Subscriber
Answer: What you have with the hot tub is mechanical breakdown, which led to the freezing that caused the damage. The freezing of the hot tub is an ensuing loss to the mechanical breakdown. Therefore, the mechanical breakdown is excluded, but the damage to the actual tub itself is covered.
Hot tub loss: Coverage C or Coverage B?
Question: Our Insured has a hot tub. It is a self-contained unit, located in an out-building, separate from the house. It is not connected to the domestic plumbing in any way, but it is hard-wired to the home’s service panel. Recently, during a power outage, the water in the tub lines froze and caused leaks. Is the tub considered Coverage C, and if so, does this loss fit the “freezing” peril?
— Massachusetts Subscriber
Answer: The fact that the hot tub is hard wired into the home’s service panel makes it coverage B, other structures. It is separated from the house by a clear space and attached by only a fence, utility line, or similar connection. The tub is also not very portable, another strike against it being personal property. The hot tub is not a swimming pool, so the exclusion for freezing to a pool doesn’t apply. Since the house was probably heated, then the freezing of the hot tub is covered, even though it’s not actually in the house.
Is a hot tub covered like a swimming pool?
Question: Our HO 00 03 04 91 insured has a hot tub on his deck that is kept full of water year-round. This past winter was mild, but we wonder what would be the outcome if, say, the hot tub pipes freeze and burst because the heater malfunctions.
Could the hot tub be classified as a pool, and therefore subject to the exclusions for freezing?
— Minnesota Subscriber
Answer: A hot tub is not a swimming pool. Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary defines it as, “a large, usually wooden tub of hot water in which bathers soak and usually socialize.”
Even if the hot tub is made of something other than wood — acrylic, generally, set in a wooden frame — it isn’t a swimming pool. (The definition could be called into question with a hot tub that can also be used for swimming against the jets of water, but we think that would be stretching.)
For our purposes, assume there is no question that the hot tub is not a swimming pool. Since the exclusion for freezing applies to swimming pools, it would not apply to the hot tub.
The other exclusion to consider is for freezing of a plumbing system. The pipes that provide water to the hot tub are presumably part of the dwelling’s plumbing system, so this exclusion only applies if the dwelling is vacant, unoccupied, or being constructed. In that case, the insured would have had to shut off the water and drain the system for coverage to apply. However, if the dwelling is not vacant, unoccupied (unoccupied means for longer than, say, an evening out), or under construction, the loss is covered.
Party in leased premises causes damage
Question: A beach house insured on an HO 03 policy was rented to others. Our investigation revealed damage to the floors and furniture from having alcoholic beverages spilled as well as damage to the spa, and pool water contamination from alcoholic beverages and other unknown substances in the water. The walls were smeared in places with dirt and a substance assumed to be blood, a towel bar was broken, and the wood fence was leaning at our inspection. This resulted from a party being thrown by someone leasing this beach house. Can this type of damage be considered vandalism or malicious mischief under the HO-3?
— New York Subscriber
Answer: “Vandalism” is often defined as, “willful or malicious destruction or defacement of public or private property.” (Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary). A wild party may not be construed as vandalism or malicious mischief; there was no intent to damage the property, just the intent to have a good time, which they obviously did.
If someone is strongly under the influence of alcohol, it is even harder to state that any damage was intended, especially since there are mostly spills and dirt, and no holes in walls, burned carpets, or the like. While courts have fallen on both sides of the issue, and it is highly dependent on variables of each situation, this instance is not vandalism or malicious mischief.
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