Home security, mitigation and the discounts that follow

Insurers price risk. Reducing the risk reduces the price, and in the current property market it also affects whether coverage is available at all.

Water

The most frequent cause of homeowners claims, and the one where prevention technology has advanced most.

Automatic water shutoff systems. Detect abnormal flow and close the main supply.

These prevent the scenario that produces the largest water losses — a supply line failing while the house is empty.

Many insurers now offer meaningful discounts for verified installation, and some require or strongly encourage them on higher-value homes.

Leak sensors placed at water heaters, washing machines, dishwashers, under sinks and in basements. Inexpensive and effective.

Braided stainless steel supply hoses replacing rubber ones on washing machines and toilets, which fail far less often.

Backwater valves to prevent sewer backup.

Sump pumps with battery backup, since power failures and heavy rain arrive together.

Shutting off the water when away for extended periods, which is free.

Fire

Monitored fire alarms, which produce discounts and which summon help when nobody is home.

Interconnected smoke alarms throughout, which are also a code requirement in most new construction.

Residential sprinkler systems, which produce substantial discounts where installed and which are more common in new build.

Updated electrical systems, particularly replacing old panels with known failure histories, aluminum branch wiring, and knob-and-tube wiring.

These affect both premium and insurability. Some insurers decline homes with certain panel brands or wiring types outright.

Chimney inspection and cleaning, where wood is burned.

Wind and hail

Where mitigation credits are largest, particularly in hurricane-exposed states that mandate them.

Impact-rated roofing, which resists hail damage and in many states qualifies for a specific discount.

Roof deck attachment and secondary water barriers, which reduce loss when covering is lost.

Roof-to-wall connections, using straps or clips rather than nails.

Opening protection — impact-rated windows and doors, or shutters.

Garage door reinforcement, which is a common failure point that leads to roof loss through internal pressurization.

Wind mitigation inspections, which document existing features and are inexpensive.

In states with mandated credits, a wind mitigation inspection frequently pays for itself many times over in the first year, and many homeowners have never had one.

Wildfire

Increasingly determinative of insurability in exposed areas.

Defensible space around the structure, with clearance zones defined by state and local standards.

Ember-resistant vents, since ember intrusion causes a large share of structure ignitions.

Non-combustible roofing and siding.

Enclosed eaves and decks, and removal of combustible material beneath decks.

Gutter guards and clearing debris.

Several states have established mitigation standards with associated insurer obligations to recognize them, and community-level programs also affect ratings.

Theft

Monitored burglar alarms, which produce discounts.

Note that local alarms without monitoring produce smaller discounts, since they do not summon a response.

Deadbolts and reinforced strike plates, which are cheap and effective.

Exterior lighting with motion sensors.

Cameras and video doorbells, which some insurers now recognize.

Earthquake

Foundation bolting and cripple wall bracing, which substantially reduce damage in older homes and which in some regions qualify for premium reductions and grant funding.

Automatic gas shutoff valves, reducing fire following earthquake.

Water heater strapping, which is inexpensive and required by code in some areas.

Claiming the discounts

The part people miss.

Discounts are not applied automatically. You must tell the insurer, and frequently document it.

Provide: installation receipts, monitoring contracts, inspection reports, permits, and photographs.

Ask specifically what documentation is required and what the discount is before undertaking work, so the economics are known.

And ask at renewal each year whether new discounts have become available, since insurers add them.

The calculation

For each measure, compare the cost against the annual premium reduction plus the reduced probability of a claim, and its deductible.

Some pay back quickly on premium alone — wind mitigation inspections, alarm monitoring, leak sensors.

Others pay back over years on premium and are justified mainly by preventing the loss — automatic shutoff systems, roofing upgrades.

And several are increasingly justified by insurability rather than by premium, which is a different calculation entirely in markets where coverage is hard to obtain.

General information about insurance and risk reduction, not insurance advice. Available discounts, mitigation standards and requirements vary by insurer, state and locality. Consult a licensed agent before undertaking work for premium purposes.