Im sure a few on the site have had to deal with sump pumps going out and getting water damage in the basement. Over the weekend a customer was telling me there damage was not going to be covered due to not having pump insurance included on their homeowners insurance. They needed a rider on their policy to include pumps.
Anyone else heard of this or could shed some light on it?
Yes you need a rider to cover the sump pump. I had this happen to me about 4 years ago over labor day weekend. Too much water tipped the sump over and flooded the basement. (we were out of town). Insurance would not cover that water damage, I didn’t have the rider then but I do now. 
That would be Water or Sewer Backup coverage Mike and its an additional endorsement available on most homeowner’s insurance policies.
What Water Backup actually covers can vary from company to company, but most only will cover damage to the structure itself and not any personal property.
The cost is usually not too expensive to add on your home insurance policy, so we typically suggest that all of our clients carry this rider on their home insurance policies if they have a sump pump in their basement. If someone is not willing to spend the additional money to have this covered under their homeowners insurance, we have also seen clients install a backup battery system on their sump pump to protect against any power outages.
Water back-up for dwelling, and water back-up for the personal property, depending on how finished your basement is determines what you should purchase for dwelling, how much stuff you have stored or how much furniture determines th amount of personal property to carry. If you have a mechanical breakdown endorsement available, add that too. Saved a couple of my clients the cost of a new pump and labor. If your pump goes out due to a power outage then only the water back-up will pay.
Here’s a question somewhat related to sump pumps. If you’re building a new house and the lot in the back slopes away enough such that the grade of the lot will be reach an elevation that is lower than the bottom of the footings, can you just take the drain tile from around the footings and have them drain into the back yard instead of having them drain into the sump basket? Seems like this would be a much better method than draining the water into the basket and then using a pump to pump it out.
I can see that this technique would not work with level lots but for lots that slope enough, it seems like this should work.
Boone
There are many municipalities that do not allow a draintile to “daylight”. I believe the reason is that is overwelms the storm sewers in the area and causes more problems down stream.
The “water” style backup pumps work great for those city dwellers, and IMHO should be installed in every house as insurance. For those of us off the grid, a battery pump can be utilized but requires the maintenence that alot of us forget about.
Either type of pump you install, the insurance policy is a no-brainer. Get an insurance agent you trust, discuss these options with them, and make sure your behind is covered in these situations. With insurance many times you get what you pay for 
Quote:
Here’s a question somewhat related to sump pumps. If you’re building a new house and the lot in the back slopes away enough such that the grade of the lot will be reach an elevation that is lower than the bottom of the footings, can you just take the drain tile from around the footings and have them drain into the back yard instead of having them drain into the sump basket? Seems like this would be a much better method than draining the water into the basket and then using a pump to pump it out.
I can see that this technique would not work with level lots but for lots that slope enough, it seems like this should work.
Boone
Over the years, the 4 cities in the metro that I worked for all allowed this. The reasoning at the time was: “Why bring the water into your dwelling via an internal sump basket when you could drain it away without ever having the water enter the house in the first place.” I can’t say what they all do these days though. …This was a few years back (’86-’97). Things change – and more stupid rules are made-up all the time.
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