It doesn’t matter how many years it’s been since the Civil War ended, for many confederate families that division between north and south lives on-and the Mason Dixon line’s never going to be forgotten as long as it marks the difference between a cool, temperate climate a summer hot enough to make the devil himself get down on his knees and beg for mercy! When you’re living south of the Mason Dixon line there’s only one thing you can do on a day like that-spend it in a swimming pool.
If you ever take a stroll (preferably the four wheeled variety) up and down the east coast you’re going to notice a lot of differences. The vegetation changes. The temperature fluctuates. Clothing and building styles differ. And you’re going to notice that the farther south you go away from the Mason Dixon line the more houses you’re going to see sporting a swimming pool in their backyard.
That statement undoubtedly prompted more than one “duh” from readers, but believe it or not it’s significant. Why? Because more people with a swimming pool in their yard equals lower premiums on your homeowners insurance.
If someone is injured on your property you’re considered to be the one legally liable, even if you had absolutely nothing to do with it. That philosophy goes double for homeowners with a swimming pool. If your neighbor’s little boy decides to sneak out of his yard and take a dip in your pool before he learns how to swim, you’re going to be responsible for the accident and whatever consequences follow-even if you weren’t home and his baby sitter was watching Oprah rather than watching him.
Sometimes it’s hard to be the grown up.
Because you don’t want to have to deal with the potential lawsuit that can follow an event like that, and the emotional and financial trauma it leaves in its wake, you want to make sure you’re covered by a homeowners liability policy that will cover accidents involving your swimming pool. If you live down south where pools are plentiful you shouldn’t have a hard time finding a provider willing to insure your pool. As a matter of fact, you should find that it comes standard with most umbrella policies and costs little to nothing extra.
On the other hand, if you live north of the Mason Dixon line where a swimming pool is the exception rather than the rule (thereby making them more appealing to the general public) you may end up paying higher premiums for your insurance than your southern neighbors. Even that extra expense is better than the hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of dollars you’ll wind up paying if your summer fun ends in tragedy.
Anthony M. Peck is the Senior Developer, Software Project Manager, and
Director of Business Development for QuoteScout.com. For more information about homeowners insurance for swimming pool owners, visit them on the web at http://www.QuoteScout.com.