Road Repairs Covered under HO3?

We represent a homeowner insured under an HO-3 in NC. The property is located on top of a mountain in a remote area at the end of a 2 mile long unimproved road with several switchbacks. The homeowner does not own the road but rather has easement rights to the road. His home is the only home on the road. The structure suffered extensive damage from a gas line leak explosion. The contractor has included in his bid a rather large line item for road repairs and maintenance to maintain the road during construction to make it as safe as possible for the various suppliers and workers traveling the road daily. The insurance carrier says no coverage. We ran into a similar issue when the main road to the southern outer banks was washed out after Hurricane Isabel. Materials and workers had to be brought in by ferry or barge at a substantial increase in cost. These costs were ultimately paid. We don't see this as being any different. Your thoughts?

North Carolina Subscriber

 

In the situation with Hurricane Isabel, the road was washed out due to the hurricane. The same cause of loss that damaged the house damaged the road. In this situation, it sounds like you have damage to the house from a gas explosion but no damage to the road- it's just in poor shape. Without any direct damage to the road, there's no reason for the carrier to pay to repair it. The insured obviously navigates the road regularly without incident, and while the contractor may have larger trucks etc., if he's not comfortable with the condition of the road he needs to take it up with whomever is responsible for road maintenance. The condition of the road has nothing to do with the loss.

 

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