This power outage/surge brought to you courtesy of your local utility company. Now what? A power outage can result in loss of refrigeration, and so home refrigerators and freezers lose their capacity to protect contents. (A rule of thumb seems to be that a refrigerator keeps food safely for about 4 hours, so long as the door is kept closed. For freezers, about 48 hours is the longest if a freezer is full.) Many homeowners policies will not cover lost food, as that is viewed as a consequential loss. And, since many people have a homeowners policy that provides “named peril” coverage for household contents, “drop in temperature” is not one of the named perils. Many insurers now either automatically include coverage or offer an endorsement that provides coverage.
That brings us to a power surge that can happen when the power comes back on. A power surge may be considered an “artificially generated current” as opposed to, say, lightning or static electricity, and so damage done by such a surge to electrical/electronic components (even household appliances now have electronic components) is often denied by insurers. Be sure to read your policy, and, if you have questions, consult an insurance professional.