If you would like any assistance from the team at Coversure with finding the right home insurance for you, then please get in touch with your local office and our team of home insurance experts will be happy to help you get the cover you need at a price that's right.
GET A QUOTEYour home is so much more than just bricks and mortar. Whether you have a flat, a house or a mansion, home is where the heart is and you'll want to give it the protection it deserves. With home insurance, through Coversure you can do just that and you could also save money on your home insurance quote.
No one likes to think of anything untoward happening to their property, but it's a sad fact of life that fires, floods and other accidents happen and when they do you'll want to know that you have the property protection you need to put your house in order.
There are two distinct types of home cover which we will look at in turn;
Buildings cover pretty much does what it says on the policy tin; it protects your building's physical structure – the walls, the roof, the foundations as well as the fitted fixtures such as the kitchen, bathrooms and fitted wardrobes. A typical policy will help you should your home be affected by fire, flood, subsidence, water leaks, storms and other unfortunate events such as damage from a falling tree.
Depending on your location and your circumstances, you may wish to add some additional protection options to your cover. Popular ones include accidental damage, legal expenses cover in case you become involved in a legal dispute over your property - say with builders working on your property - and unoccupied property insurance. Unoccupied property cover is an essential extra if you are planning to leave your home vacant for an extended period of time; typically, around 30 days or more.
It's a common misconception that buildings cover is a legal requirement but it isn't. However, as most mortgage providers will insist on you having it in place before they provide you with the funds, it's pretty much a must-have. Add to that the potentially catastrophic consequences of not having it in place and buildings insurance really is an essential protection.
Many home owners believe that your buildings insurance policy should be enough to cover the market value of your home. The reality is that you only need enough to cover the rebuild costs of the property should it be burnt to the ground or devastated by a falling tree. The cost of rebuilding is often lower than the market value so you can afford to take out a lower level of cover. However, if you live in an unusual, listed or old property then cost of a rebuild may actually be higher than the market value as getting enough materials to rebuild a large property, Victorian brickwork features, ancient timber beams or sash windows can push up the cost of a rebuild significantly.
It's important to get your level of buildings insurance right. Take out too much and you'll end up paying for something you don't need. Take out too little and you run the risk of property underinsurance – a serious problem that affects around 20% of UK households according to the Association of British Insurers – and you could be left facing a hefty bill should the worst happen.
To make sure you get the right level of cover you can either talk to a building surveyor or simply ask your insurance broker to do so for you when you get your home insurance quote. It's also worth remembering to update your valuations from time-to-time, especially if you have work done as extensions, modernisations and simple inflationary changes can all leave you with less protection that you need.
Home contents insurance - also known simply as contents insurance – protects the things in your home. From your curtains to your TV, should they be lost or damaged due to eventualities such as fire, flood, theft or even an explosion or a lightning strike then your contents policy will pay for replacements.
When taking out a contents policy – be it as a standalone policy or as part of a combined contents and buildings home insurance package – you'll have a few options for your cover;
This will obviously vary depending on your circumstances, the number of rooms in your property, the number of people living in your home and whether you have specific valuables such as jewellery, art, antiques or fine wine.
According to the Association of British Insurers, the average family estimates their contents at around £30,000 when in reality the cost of replacing everything would be closer to £60,000. Getting the figure right obviously matters should you need to make a claim and here are a few tips on how to get yours right;
Most standard home contents insurance policies will come with limits on items. For example, a policy may state that jewellery is only covered to a value of £5,000 and if you have expensive jewellery, including watches, that may not be sufficient cover. Also watch out for items that have appreciated in value such as wine collections. The fine wine market has been extremely buoyant in recent years. For example; a case of Château Lafite 2005 has gone from around £4-£7,000 since its release and such increases need to be factored in to any cover you have.
Your insurer will probably ask for details of any valuable items, and it is important that you give all the relevant information. If not, you could invalidate the policy and the insurer could refuse to pay out in the event of a claim.
Whether you are looking for buildings insurance, contents insurance or a combination of the two, there are ways of cutting the cost of high quality cover. Some of the best ways include;
Of course, not all homes are the same and some represent specific, 'difficult' risks to insurers which need special types of cover which is collectively known as non-standard property insurance. The most common of these policies are;