Home Insurance Guide
Home insurance is commonly referred to in the context of providing insurance cover for building and contents insurance for personal property. The UK home insurance market is highly competitive with many insurers offering the option for homeowners for combined building and contents insurance. Policies will often have the option for home legal expenses insurance. With the home being the biggest asset most people own insuring the rebuild cost makes a lot of sense and may be required if their is an oustanding mortgage by the lender. Contents insurance is a valuable insurance as the cost of replacing the contents of a typical home can significant if you take into account carpets, curtains, electricals and valuables.
Different Types of Home Insurance
There are a range of insurance policies available to cover different types of risk when it comes to your home - see below.
Type Home of Insurance |
Home Insurance Features |
Building Insurance |
Provides cover to property against risk factors such as fire and flood. Building insurance can be for a specific sum assured or rebuild cost. When taking out a mortgage most lenders will insist you take out building insurance. |
Contents Insurance |
Provides financial protection in the event of damage or destruction to contents and possession due to events such as theft, fire or flood. In calculating the cost of contents insurance for high value items specialist high value contents insurance may be required. |
Flood Insurance |
Flood risk insurance provides financial protection to properties. In the UK this type of cover has become increasingly important and the cost of cover has risen in flood designated areas as extreme weather conditions have become more commonplace. |
Home Insurance |
Home insurance can include both building and contents insurance and provides financial protection in the event of damage to your home e.g. fire or contents e.g. burglary. In the UK the home insurance market is highly competitive and home insurance premiums can vary significantly from one home insurance provider to the next. |
Landlord Insurance |
Provides financial protection to landlords covering anything from flood to tenant damage. Landlord insurance policies will usually include public and property owner liability insurance. Landlords Contents insurance is also an option where properties are furnished. |
Legal Expenses Insurance |
Sometimes sold as an add on to house insurance and provides legal expense cover in the event of a dispute. There are two types of cover; Most legal expenses insurance is to provide protection for things that might happen and covers costs of solicitor fees and leagl costs if the other side wins. After the event legal expenses insurance provides protection in the event that you lose your court case. |
Mortgage Insurance |
Mortgage insurance can take two forms. Mortgage life insurance provides financial protection in the event of death of the mortgage holder (s) ensuring that any mortgage liability on your home is met. Mortgage payment protection insurance provides protection to home mortgage repayments in the event that the mortgage holder in unable to work due to sickness, injury or unemployment. Cover will last normally for no more than 12 months. |
Guide to buying home insurance
As with many things in life the more time you put into something the more you will get out and with buying insurance spending some time understanding what to look out for can save you both time and money in the long run and should ensure that you end up with the right cover. Getting the right home insurance cover ensures peace of mind that if your home is damaged or contents stolen you will recieve compensation. Things to consider:
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Building Insurance - Your home is probably the most valuable asset you own so you want to insure that if things go wrong you are adequately covered. This type of cover includes the building structure, and fixture and fittings such as the floors, windows and fitted kitchens and depending on the cover outbuildings such as your garage or garden shed. A comprehensive buildings insurance policy should provide protection against fire, falling trees, storm damage, vandalism, subsidence, earthquake and flood. With home insurance in flood areas the level of cover that you are offered may be affected by the property location. You can check whether your house is in a flood risk area by typing your post code into the Environment Agency's Flood map. Depending on the insurer you will be quoted on either a sum insured basis i.e. you specify the sum of money you want your home to be covered for on a no limit basis where the insurance will cover the cost of rebuilding or repairing your property. When comparing building insurance quotes it is important you compare quotes as much as possible on a like for like basis and read the small print to ensure the cover is in line with expectations.
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Contents Insurance - With contents insurance there are two types of cover arrangement. New for old policies are more expensive with the payout providing funds to replace your lost or damaged item with a new one. With an indemnity policy the payout will reflect the age of the item that you are claiming for and so the payout won't necessarily reflect the replacement cost.
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Using a Comparison website - Online comparison websites provide a useful and easy way of getting insurance quotes. No insurance comparison website covers the whole market so it makes sense to use more than one source to ensure you are getting the right cover at the right price. You should also note that some home insurance companies do not appear on comparison websites e.g.Direct Line Home Insurance and Aviva home Insurance
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Using an Insurance broker - If you are not sure what cover you need or want somebody to help you through the process there are many home insurance brokers who will be happy to help. A good insurance broker will not help you in buying home insurance but also provide support in the event that you need to make a claim. If you intend to use a broker you should check their FSA registration on the FSA website.
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Providing correct information - In assessing the insurance risk an insurance company will rely on the information that you give as being accurate. Information provided will determine whether insurance is provided and the cost of premiums. It is therefore important that any information you provide is correct e.g. for home insurance factors such as existing subsidence issues with the property or previous flood damage can have a material impact on the premium you are required to pay. Non disclosure of such information at the time of application can result in a non payout in the event of a claim. If you are using an insurance broker this is where valuable advice can be provided.
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Cheapest is not always best - With insurance you generally get what you pay for so before you sign up to a home insurance policy you should be aware of what you are covered for and what is excluded. You should consider what you need and ensure you are adequately covered. This may mean you have to pay more to get what you want.
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Automatic Renewal - when you buy home insurance and you pay by direct debit some insurance companies will automatically renew your policy at the renewal date. You should recieve a written notice of the renewal and any increase in the premium. If you are not happy you need to be proactive and shop around before the renewal date and cancel the existing policy before renewal.
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Changing your mind - You have the right to change your mind within a set period normally 14 days from purchase of the home insurance policy and have your money returned.