The term endorsement is used to describe any attachment to your insurance policy that adds to, removes or changes the original terms.

For the most part it is used to describe a number of different types of optional home insurance coverage you can have added to a standard home insurance policy in order to get more protection.

Homeowners policies come with exclusions and limitations for covering certain types of items in your home that carry a high risk of being lost like jewelry or antiques. Some of these items may be only covered up to a specific dollar amount in your policy.

So in order to get full coverage for items like expensive jewelry, furs, art, camera equipment, computers and other pricey electronics – you would get a “scheduled personal property endorsement.”

An endorsement may also offer additional protection in the way of covering damage under different circumstances. For example, your standard policy may only cover an item in the event of certain “perils” – an endorsement may extend that coverage to include misplacing an item or a piece of it (if a stone falls off your diamond ring for example.) These kinds of endorsements have the added value of having no deductible.

A new kind of endorsement quickly gaining popularity is identity fraud protection. This endorsement will cover you in the event that your personal information is stolen and misused. Getting an identity fraud endorsement can cover your lost wages, attorney’s fees and other costs of clearing your name.