Getting Remarried? How Does This Change Your Insurance In MA?
When getting married for the 2nd or 3rd time, or when combining households there are some things you need to change on your personal insurance policies.
Homeowners Insurance
When you get remarried, you are combining two (2) households into one. You will need to increase your personal property coverage on your homeowner’s insurance policy to make sure you have adequate coverage. You also want to make sure both names are on the policy. Check with your insurance agent for eligibility.
If you do not own a house or condo, you should have a renter’s insurance policy. The renter’s policy will not only protect all of your personal belongings in the event of a loss, but it will also provide you with liability insurance to protect your combined assets and future combined assets. The cost of a renter’s policy is as low as $150.00 a year.
Umbrella Liability Insurance
Combined households + combined earnings = more to lose! We strongly recommend purchasing an umbrella policy. The umbrella policy will give you additional liability coverage over the liability coverage on your auto and home insurance policies.
Auto Insurance
When you get remarried, you can combine your auto policies to receive a multi-car discount. Combining the home and auto policies with the same insurance company will give you the best discounts available.
If you are going to keep your auto policies separate, make sure you are both listed as drivers on each policy. You should also include “any and all” household drivers including the children from both spouses. A child away at school is still considered a “household member”. If any household member is not listed on the policy, they will NOT be covered. If the household member has their own Massachusetts Auto insurance policy you will not be charged for adding them to your policy. Be safe and list all household members that have a driver’s license! This would also apply if you not married and living in the same house.
Lastly, change your mailing and garaging address on all auto policies affected by the move.
This article was written by Mindy Lichtman. Mindy is the Personal Lines Advisor at Markham Group, Inc. If you have specific questions about divorce or remarriage and how it affects your insurance in Mass, please do not hesitate to call, email or complete our website contact page.