The answers come from Madelyn Flannagan, vice president for education and research with the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America in Alexandria, Va.  Here is a sample of what Flannagan has to say about homeowners insurance:

On having enough dwelling coverage:  "With the ease of getting home equity loans in recent years, a lot of people have done a lot of remodeling...Their policy may not have kept up."

On contents coverage:  "A lot of people are buying expensive TVs and high-end appliances.  In most policies, a home's contents are insured for 50 percent to 70 percent of the home's value. So if you have $100,000 coverage for the structure, you generally have $50,000 to $70,000 coverage for the contents.  If you don't think that's enough, you can increase it."

Jeanne M. Salvatore, vice president for consumer affairs with the Insurance Information Institute in New York advised on how to bring down the cost of their homeowners insurance:

"One is to increase the size of the deductible, which is the amount you have to pay out of pocket before the insurance coverage kicks in. In most homeowners policies, the deductible is $250 or $500. Raising that to $1,000 could lower the premium.  Another is to buy your homeowners policy from the same company that insures your car, boat or vacation home because many companies give multipolicy discounts, she said."