Tailoring to Coverage Needs

 Summary: The coverages of the standard homeowners forms (Forms HO 00 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, and 08) are designed to provide the kinds of insurance protection that most homeowners will need. But the needs of individual insureds can diverge, and so endorsements are used to tailor coverage to meet these needs. Additionally, insurers may use endorsements to limit coverage, as when the windstorm or hail exclusion endorsement is attached to coastal homeowners policies.

The endorsements discussed here are those under the jurisdiction of Insurance Services Office (ISO). They do not constitute the extent of tailoring possible with respect to homeowners forms. The introduction in the ISO homeowners manual to the program's general rules state that "in all cases not specifically provided for in this manual," the rules, rates, forms, and endorsements of individual insurers govern each coverage. This makes it possible for insurers to develop special endorsements as the need arises, assuming, or course, that the proposed risk is considered insurable and that an appropriate premium can be obtained.