Homeowners with a pool often see higher home insurance rates for two reasons:
You have one more piece of property to cover for damages
You're more likely to file a liability claim
By paying these higher rates, your homeowners insurance policy will cover damage to your pool as well as medical bills and legal expenses if someone is injured in a pool-related accident at your home and they sue you.
Homeowners insurance with a pool — explained
Homeowners insurance typically covers damage to your pool and pool cages attached to your home against the same risks that your house is covered by, like fire or weather-related damage. It also protects your liability in the event that someone gets hurt while using your pool and decides to sue you for damages.
Having a pool increases your liability exposure since it opens up the possibility of someone getting injured or drowning while using it. This is especially true if you have a pool with a diving board or a pool with no safety fence, which could cause your rates to increase even more.
How much is homeowners insurance with a pool?
The average cost of homeowners insurance with a pool is around $1,823 per year, according to our analysis of 2022 home insurance rates from across the country.
However, how much you ultimately end up paying will depend on the type of pool you have, how much additional liability coverage you purchase, and how your insurer classifies your pool.
For example, if your pool is considered personal property or an other structure, you may consider increasing your personal property or other structures coverage limits.
Average cost of homeowners insurance with a pool
Here's a look at the average cost of homeowners insurance with a pool for some of the most popular insurance companies in the U.S.:
Company | Average annual rate with a pool | |
|---|---|---|
$1,597 | ||
$2,630 | ||
$1,922 | ||
$6,019 | ||
$1,902 | ||
$1,955 | ||
$2,039 | ||
$1,432 |
Methodology: Annual rates are based on our analysis of home insurance premiums provided by Quadrant Information Services in March 2022 for ZIP codes in all 50 states plus Washington, D.C. for homeowners with a pool.
Does homeowners insurance cover damage to my pool?
Homeowners insurance may help cover pool repairs if it’s damaged by a covered peril. These are most of the same perils that are covered by dwelling coverage — the main component of your home insurance policy that covers the structure of your home.
Pool damage that's covered
Damage to your pool that's caused by any of the following perils is typically covered:
Fire
Lightning strikes
Hail
Explosions
Vandalism
Pool damage that's NOT covered
The following causes of damage to your pool typically aren't covered by a standard home insurance policy:
Earthquakes
Flooding
Maintenance issues
General wear and tear
Pool liner damaged by water freezing over
Pool cover collapses from weight of rainwater, snow, or ice
Homeowners insurance never covers flood or earthquake damage, and while you can purchase flood or earthquake insurance to protect your home from such natural disasters, both of those policy types typically exclude coverage for swimming pools.
How does having a pool impact your liability coverage?
Since pools are considered an attractive nuisance and a liability hazard, it may necessitate more than the standard amount of liability coverage.
Standard home insurance policies are typically equipped with anywhere from $100,000 to $500,000 in personal liability coverage, which will cover you for costs like medical bills and legal fees if a guest is injured in your home.
The Insurance Information Institute recommends that pool owners set their liability insurance around $300,000 to $500,000 — or more if your assets warrant it. [1] If you think you need additional coverage, you may want to consider an umbrella insurance policy, an additional liability policy you can tack on to your homeowners policy.
Home insurance for above-ground pools vs. in-ground pools
The section of your policy that your pool is covered under can vary depending on the insurer you have andDepending on whether your pool is in- or above-ground, it will be covered by one of three parts of your policy:
Section of policy its covered under | Type of pool | Coverage limits |
|---|---|---|
In-ground pool | Up to $1 million | |
In-ground pool | 10% of your dwelling coverage limit | |
Above-ground pool | 50% to 75% of your dwelling coverage limit |
Let's take a look at an example.
Allstate classifies above-ground pools as personal property because they're an impermanent structure that's assembled and ultimately portable, like bikes or computers.
But other insurance companies consider in-ground or permanent above-ground pools as their own separate structure, which means it's covered under the other structures coverage of your policy.
And still other insurers consider in-ground pools to be a part of your home's structure — making it covered by your policy's dwelling coverage.
