Is Your Landscaping a Liability?

When you think about the different liabilities around your home, what comes to mind first? If you have a pool, it probably pops up at the forefront of your thoughts, but other common areas of injuries include stairs and kitchens.

Surprisingly, many people don’t even consider what kind of liabilities their landscaping may present and unfortunately—they should.

High Hedges

Plants around the perimeter of your home offer you privacy that can make living there even more enjoyable but when these high hedges and trees block your view as you back out of your driveway, they can become a liability. Guests who visit your home may have accidents when their visibility is impaired and even your neighbors, whose driveways are also obscured by your plant life, could pay a price.

Work with your local codes department to keep bushes and trees trimmed appropriately and test your road visibility from several vantage points to ensure that oncoming traffic can be clearly viewed as you and your neighbors back out.

Prickly Plants

In certain areas of the country cactus plants are popular xeriscaping options. Also commonly seen on lawns across the country are thorny bushes such as roses. These plants with their thorny defense systems can cause injuries to those who accidentally trip and stumble into them. While a body could get away with a few scratches after a run in with a plant, an eye injury could be an expensive liability.

Make sure plants with thorns are away from doors and walkways. Keep them appropriately trimmed and supported and, when possible, build retaining walls around them to help keep people from wandering close to them.

Fences in Disrepair

A broken chain link or wooden fence can prompt a trip and fall or impale someone. During a storm, it could even cause damage to another’s property. Make sure fences are secured and have no dangerous loose parts or broken edges.

When you are trying to control costs at home, it’s important that you not just focus on cutting bills and clipping coupons but also that you keep your eyes open for risks that could result in costly liabilities and home insurance premium increases. Your agent can help you look at your property in terms of potential risks rather than a simple method of curb appeal.

It’s important that your home insurance coverage provide adequate protection for your individual needs. Give us a call at (800) 807-6871 and we can work together to make sure that everything you need covered, is.

Cliff Cottam Insurance Services will help you determine the best protection for you!