Wind Use Liability and Homeowners Insurance

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After securing your building permits and obtaining approval from your local utility to interconnect your turbine system to the local grid, careful discussion with your insurance agent is required when discussing liability coverage and homeowners’ coverage. Mick Sagrillo of Sagrillo Power & Light shares that when discussing homeowner’s coverage, it best to explain to your insurance agent that you “will be insuring a wind mill and tower (terms of familiarity) as an addition to what is already insured on your property.” Sagrillo also cautions owners to “have insurance coverage that includes damage to the system itself from “acts of God”, plus possible options for fire, theft, vandalism, or flooding.”

Liability coverage addresses two areas of concern when utilizing an interconnected wind energy configuration. First, is provides coverage for property damage and most utility companies require the coverage for approval to connect to the local grid. Secondly, liability coverage protects wind turbine owners in case of personal injury or death of anyone working on a utility line. Sagrillo further explains, “a lineman could be electrocuted if the grid goes down but your wind system continues to generate electricity”. Though modern wind systems have built-in disconnects from the grid in the event of a power outage, utility companies will insist on this coverage

For more details about navigating the insurance breezes associated with wind turbine ownership, Mick Sagrillo offers several tip sheets through the American Wind Energy Assocation

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