Replacement cost

Pays what it costs to replace the structure or belongings without deducting depreciation, up to the policy limit. California's guide notes that insurers commonly pay the cash value first and the remainder once you have actually replaced the item, so keep the receipts.

What kind of thing this is

Replacement cost is an insurance concept in this field. This definition comes from a primary government source. Where the wording matters we quote the standard rather than paraphrase it, because paraphrase is where precision leaks out.

Where you will meet it

You will hear this from an adjuster, and it usually decides the answer rather than describing it. Getting the term right is how you ask a question the adjuster can actually answer.

How it connects

• partOf: homeowners insurance

Why the wording matters

This site defines terms in under forty words wherever it can, and attaches the practical consequence rather than leaving it implied. A definition that tells you what something is, without telling you what follows from it, is trivia at a moment when nobody has room for trivia.