6. Sloth

6. Sloth

Being lazy about making your insurance payments could lead to cancellation.

"Excuses won't pay the bills if you let your insurance lapse and it results in policy cancellation, particularly if you get in an accident or you have a house fire without coverage in place," says Walker.

A lapse in your auto insurance coverage can lead to much higher rates, according to an Insurance.com analysis of car insurance policies sold.

Remember that your mortgage lender also will require you to carry insurance on your home. Fail to do so, and you likely will pay.

"You definitely don't want to find yourself in a situation where you are required to get forced place insurance," says Barry.

This type of insurance protects the lender, not the homeowner. However, the homeowner is responsible for paying the premiums, which typically are much more expensive than the cost of standard home insurance.