An insurance policy that provides protection to the properties against various kinds of risks, such as fire, theft, smoke, wind, hail, weight of ice and snow, lightning and more is called property insurance. It concerns with the specialized forms of insurance like flood insurance, earthquake insurance, home insurance or boiler insurance. This policy also provides liability coverage in case someone other than owner or renter is injured while on the property, and decides to sue. However, it doesn’t cover the damages caused by water sources such as floods, tsunamis, drain backups, sewer backups, groundwater seepage, standing water, etc.
The concept of property insurance was originated in protecting the maritime enterprises of the Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans from periods earlier than 533 A.D. When merchantmen expanded their operations and exploration for new goods they began to pool their resources to spread the risk of loss of their ships, goods, buildings and property among local bankers, other merchants and affluent families. By the 1600s merchants were insuring buildings against fire and goods against theft. Today every single thing is insured so as to reduce the risks and losses.
Property insurance, today, is a very broad concept. It is a multi-billion dollar annual business covering all the losses and risks that different commercial and personal property bears. Today, property insurance covers more than just tangible real and personal property, it has come to recover lost income, business interruptions, computers, business papers, and trademark, patent and copyright infringement.