Mercury Insurance Urges Late-Winter Home Maintenance to Prevent Costly Future Repairs
- Mercury General urges homeowners to complete late-winter maintenance to avoid rising repair costs and reduce insurance claims.
- Mercury General advises clearing gutters, inspecting roofs and attics, checking heating, and sealing gaps to prevent water damage.
- Mercury General offers a checklist framing maintenance as risk management to lower claims and emergency repair expenses.
Mercury urges homeowners to act in late winter
LOS ANGELES, Feb 17 — Mercury Insurance is urging homeowners to use the late-winter window to complete targeted maintenance projects to avoid rising repair costs and reduce future insurance claims, the company says in a release. The insurer cites industry research showing the average delayed home repair now costs more than $5,600 and that nearly three-quarters of homeowners admit delaying at least one repair. Mercury warns deferred maintenance compounds at about 7% per year and can lead homeowners to pay three to five times more than preventive care would have cost.
Targeted late-winter maintenance to cut claims and costs
Mercury frames late winter as an optimal prevention period, with the harshest weather generally behind and spring storms still ahead. Adam Bakonis, senior product manager for property at Mercury, stresses that simple actions — clearing gutters and downspouts to prevent ice dams, inspecting roofs and attics for loose shingles or moisture, performing a final heating-system check, and sealing gaps around doors and windows — materially lower the risk of water intrusion and structural deterioration that drive costly claims.
The insurer underlines that addressing manageable issues now also mitigates the risk of higher contractor bills and limited availability during peak storm and renovation seasons. Mercury says proactive maintenance reduces claim frequency and severity, improves safety and insurance outcomes, and helps homeowners preserve resale value. The company positions ongoing education and risk-prevention guidance as central to limiting unexpected repair expenses and to encouraging homeowners to schedule preventive work before storms and warmer-season demand push up costs.
Insurer guidance links to property risk management
Mercury’s release provides a targeted home maintenance checklist and frames the guidance as part of broader property risk management efforts by insurers to contain losses. The company notes small investments now often yield substantial savings compared with emergency repairs later and can lead to fewer and smaller claims for carriers.
Practical checklist for homeowners
Mercury recommends inspections and tune-ups for roofs, attics, gutters, HVAC systems and plumbing, plus weather-stripping, caulking, and testing smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. The insurer emphasizes these steps both protect property and can improve outcomes when homeowners file claims.