Risks and Prices - getting the right home insurance cover at the right price
There's no doubt that if you want to find the right cover for you, it is necessary to shop around.
If you are currently insured and simply expect your current insurance company to automatically offer
you the cheapest quote then you could be seen as a little naïve, given that many home insurance companies
will offer extremely competitive prices or discounts for new business.
For example, some of these discounts could be awarded for:
- An introductory discount
- A number of claim free years
- Purchasing your buildings and contents policies together
- Being in a neighbourhood watch area
- A burglar alarm
- High quality locks and security
Of course, one way of making this whole process easier would be to see lots of prices from a
whole range of home insurance companies and the cover that each policy offers you, instead of
having to go to a multitude of home insurance companies repeating the same information over
and over again. Fortunately, there are now home insurance aggregators out there - with
Gocompare.com being one of them - that can offer you this process. The advantage with
Gocompare.com is that we focus as much on the cover as we do on the price, so you won't end
up being drawn into buying a policy which only offers the barest minimum of cover, which could
prove to be an expensive error.
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The reputation of the insurance company is extremely important; you want to deal with a reputable
insurer that will offer a high level of customer service, especially at the point of a claim. Friends
and family may be the best source of information about insurance companies as they may have been
insured with a good number of insurance companies in their insurance lifetime.
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There are many home insurance companies that offer discounts for good security on your home. A good
insurance company or broker will be able to provide you with a list of measures you can take to make
your property more secure and as a result obtain a cheaper quote.
Here are some examples which should help towards getting that all important discount:
- Make sure you have adequate locks on outside doors
- Make sure all windows have key operated locks
- Don't make it obvious when you're out or away on holiday
- Mark your possessions with your postcode and make a list of your valuables, noting the serial numbers of electronic appliances
- Have an alarm fitted by an approved supplier and ensure it is maintained annually
- Become part of a neighbourhood watch scheme
In the event of a claim your insurance policy can help put things right, but cannot compensate for
the upset and inconvenience. Take all the precautions you can to prevent the worst from happening.
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Buildings
The re-build value of your home is the cost of re-building your property in the unlikely event that
it is destroyed by fire etc. The biggest point to remember is that the market value of your home
does not reflect the rebuild value as it may be less or more than the market value and won't include
the cost of the land. The rebuild value of your property can usually be found on your mortgage agreement,
or the deeds to your home. This figure should be index-linked in line with inflation.
Contents
The best way (but most laborious way) is to list every one of the contents in your home down with
a costing next to each one. Make sure to separate them by their respective rooms as well. That way,
if you want to double check the list you'll know where to find each of the listed contents.
Also, check the cover on valuables such as jewellery; they may need to be covered separately. Once
you have done this, you will be able to total the list for an accurate sum of contents to be insured.
Additional Protection
Most insurance policies offer additional areas of protection, such as Accidental Damage, Legal
Expenses, etc. These areas of protection may be included as standard within the basic home
insurance policy, perhaps to a limited degree, and will be reflected in the cost of the policy.
Alternatively, some home insurance policies offer these areas as optional, and you may be able
to choose these additional areas of protection for an added fee.
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The first obvious sign of subsidence is the appearance of cracks. However, not all cracks indicate
that there is a problem. Most buildings experience cracking at some time and there is no need to
be alarmed by every crack that appears.
Cracks are common in new properties and newly built extensions. They are likely to be the result
of the building settling under its own weight. These are usually nothing to worry about, nor are
fine cracks that often appear in newly plastered walls. Buildings shrink and swell naturally due
to changes in temperature and humidity, which can lead to minor cracks where walls and ceilings
meet. These too are not normally anything to worry about.
What should be looked out for are small, usually diagonal, cracks which suddenly appear in plaster
work inside and outside bricks at weak points, such as around doors and windows, especially after
long periods of dry weather. These may, but not necessarily, indicate movement in the building's
foundations. The cracks will normally be thicker than a 10p coin, and usually be wider at the
top. Doors and windows may also 'stick' due to the distortion of the building.
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As previously mentioned the re-build value of your home, is the cost of re-building your property
in the unlikely event that it is destroyed by fire etc. The current market value does not reflect
the re-build cost. Clearing of the land and surveyors fees should be taken into consideration
in addition to replacing the property.
A Rebuilding Cost Assessment is normally carried out by taking detailed measurements of the house
and using the rebuilding cost information provided by BCIS (Building Cost Information Service).
However, this may not be appropriate in certain circumstances, where the method of rebuilding
cost assessment will need to be specially agreed.
For more information regarding rebuild costs on the BCIS site please use the link provided in
this buyers guide. This can be found under the
useful home insurance links
section.
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