Home insurance

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COMPARE HOME INSURANCE QUOTES

Home insurance can't prevent damage. But it could help you relax, knowing that you’ll be covered should something happen. Like a fire, flood or theft.

We’ve got the options. You make the choice. Get peace of mind and cheaper cover today by comparing quotes with us.

  1. Tell us about you and your home

    Like where you live, your property type, when it was built, and any previous flooding or subsidence.

  2. Choose the cover you need

    Pick from buildings only, contents only or a combined policy. And select the amount of cover you’ll need for your building and/or contents.

  3. Get quotes and compare policies

    Find the best policy for you based on price, policy cover, excess payable and Defaqto rating.

  4. Pick your policy and get free £250 excess cover^

    We hope you never have to claim. But if you do, we’ll refund up to £250 of your excess.

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Types of home insurance policy

There are three types of home insurance you can buy: buildings insurance, contents insurance or combined buildings and contents insurance.

The type you'll need will depend on your home, your tenancy status and your budget.

Buildings insurance

This covers the structure of the property and its permanent fixtures and fittings – things like your walls, roof and fitted kitchens.

Buildings insurance typically covers damage caused by fire, flooding, storms, theft, vandalism, subsidence, and falling trees.

It can also include cover for alternative accommodation if your home becomes uninhabitable following an insured event.

Contents insurance

This type of policy covers your household items like furniture, electricals, clothing and jewellery.

Contents insurance typically covers damage or loss caused by fire, flooding and theft.

It might not cover accidental damage or items that you take outside the home, like laptops, mobile phones, and bikes.

Combined home insurance

A combined buildings and contents insurance policy covers the structure of your home and your belongings.

This can be more convenient and cost-effective than buying two separate policies.

Home insurance companies we work with

We want you to find the right insurance at the right price. That's why we search for quotes from over 65 UK home insurers[3] including:

halifax home insurance
admiral home insurance
aa home insurance
esure home insurance
hastings direct home insurance
policy expert home insurance
more than home insurance
rias home insurance

Who needs home insurance?

Home insurance isn’t a legal requirement, but it’s a good idea to have it. Think about whether you could afford to repair your home or replace your possessions if they were damaged, lost or stolen. Those who may want it include:

Homeowners

It's often a condition of your mortgage to have buildings insurance. Protection of your belongings is optional.

If you own your home outright, both buildings and contents insurance are optional.

Renters

If you’re renting a property, buildings insurance is the responsibility of the landlord.

Your landlord's insurance won’t cover your contents though. You’ll need your own renter's insurance policy for that.

Landlords

Landlords are required by law to have insurance that’ll look after the property and the occupiers.

Landlord insurance will cover your buildings, contents, accidental damage, landlord liability, and alternative accommodation.

Students

Students living away from home may want student contents insurance for any expensive kit they own.

Share houses are regularly targeted by thieves, and the right insurance could protect you against theft.

Before you buy, check whether your belongings are covered by your parents’ home insurance first.

Holiday homeowners

You can't cover a second home with standard home insurance.

Instead, you’ll need holiday home insurance to cover the risks associated with renting your second home out and leaving it empty for long periods of time.

Short-term letters

If you let a room, annex or your entire property on a short-term basis, you’ll need short-term let insurance.

It’ll cover any guest injury claims or damages caused by guests during their stay.

You’ll likely need standard home insurance too to cover your home for any non-guest related losses.

What does home insurance cover?

Your coverage will depend on your insurance policy. Each provider will list their own coverage and exclusions in the policy documents.

What’s usually covered?

  • Fire damage - Covers damage caused by home fires, smoke or explosion.
  • Theft - Covers the replacement of your possessions if lost during a burglary.
  • Weather damage - Covers extreme-weather damage such as storms, flooding, hail, and lightning strikes.
  • Escape of water - Cover water leaking from burst pipes or appliances.
  • Malicious damage - Covers intentional damage to your home, like vandalism, as long as you or anyone staying with you didn’t cause it.
  • Subsidence, heave or landslip - This covers damage to your home caused by subsidence, heave or landslip.
  • Falling trees - Covers damage to your home by a tree falling, like crashing through your fence or damaging roof tiles.

What’s usually excluded?

  • Wear and tear - Damage caused by the general passing of time e.g. worn carpets or loose roof tiles.
  • Your excess - This is what you pay towards your claim. The amount can vary depending on the damage you’re claiming for.
  • Mechanical breakdown - Appliances such as fridges or washing machines expiring due to age.
  • Negligence – If not taking action to repair something leads to more damage. Like not fixing a cracked pipe or damp patch.
  • Poor workmanship – Damage that’s caused due to a low standard of building work or DIY, for example sub-par wiring led to a fire.
  • Items worth more than the policy limit – Check your policy limit to find out what it is. It’s usually around £1,000. So a high-spec computer or piece of art might not be covered unless you specify it on the policy.
  • Empty properties – Unoccupied properties are at greater risk of damage as there’s no-one around to deter thieves and keep an eye on things.

Add-ons and additional cover

You can add upgrades to your policy if you think you'll need them. You’ll have to pay extra for them, so think about whether they’re worth the extra cost.

Accidental damage cover

This'll cover you for claims due to accidents in the home like a spilt glass of wine on a rug or a smashed window.

Accidental damage caused by children is usually included, but rarely pets and amateur DIY.

Away from home cover

Standard contents insurance will only cover your belongings while they’re in your house.

If you want cover when you're away from home, you’ll need personal possessions insurance.

Home emergency cover

Home emergency cover will protect you against things like boiler breakdowns, electrical failure and blocked drains.

It’ll cover the cost of calling out an approved tradesman to get your services up and running again, as well as any replacement parts needed.

Legal expenses cover

Help for the costs of legal proceedings that involve your home.

Personal injury claims and property disputes with neighbours are times you may need to use it.

Bicycle cover

Your bike will be covered for things like theft, personal accidents and malicious damage.

You can get bike cover as a home insurance add-on, but a separate policy will usually offer more cover.

No-claims protection

The longer you go without making a claim, the higher the discount you get on your home insurance.

No-claims protection means you’ll get to keep the same level of discount even if you do make a claim.

Join over 900,000 customers getting a home insurance quote with Go.Compare each year[8]

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[8]Based on Go.Compare home insurance quotes made between 1 November 2021 and 31 October 2022. Excludes customers where no quote was returned and test quotes.

How much does home insurance cost?

The average price paid by GoCompare customers for a combined home insurance policy is £190 a year.[1]

Buildings-only or contents-only cover is cheaper than a combined policy, but you won't get the same level of cover.

Things like the location and size of your house can also impact the cost of your premium.

Here’s the average cost of home insurance by policy according to GoCompare data:

Type of policy Annual cost*
Buildings insurance £146
Contents insurance £74
Combined insurance £190
*The average price paid annually for home insurance purchased in September 2022 by type of cover. For buildings and contents insurance, it was £190. For buildings insurance only, it was £146. For contents insurance only, it was £74.

What affects the cost of my home insurance?

The cost of your premium will depend on how likely the insurer thinks you are to make a claim and how much that claim could potentially cost them. Insurers use a whole host of factors to calculate your insurance including:

Rebuild cost of your home

Your home's rebuild cost is based on things like the size of the property, the materials it's made from and whether it's listed or not.

Value of your possessions

If you have lots of valuable contents to insure, this will cost you more.

Location

Your area's affluence, crime rate and the likelihood of flooding can all affect the cost of your cover.

Age

Homes that are older, such as listed buildings, are more likely to have unique features or building materials that are hard to replace. They may also have older electric and plumbing systems.

Security

Good home security can mean insurers view you as less of a risk, which may get you cheaper quotes. Consider protecting your home with secure door and window locks, burglar alarms and smoke detectors.

Building materials

If you have a non-standard home, it could cost more to rebuild. Even thatched or flat roofs can be considered more of a risk.

Add-ons

Extra cover like accidental damage and home emergency cover isn’t always included as standard, so adding this will up the price.

Claims history

If you’ve not claimed recently – or ever – you could be offered a no claims discount.

How can I get cheaper home insurance?

Here's eight tips that could help keep the cost of your premium down:

  1. Shop around for quotes

    In the last year, 77% of people didn’t switch their home insurance to a new provider, potentially missing out on cheaper premiums.[4].

  2. Buy 27 days before your policy ends

    Our research shows it’ll cost around 17% less than it would to buy it the day before your existing policy renews.[5]

  3. Improve your home security

    Get insurer-approved locks for your home, as well as smoke and burglar alarm systems.

  4. Regularly maintain your home

    Staying on top of things and getting repairs done early can save you money in the long run.

  5. Build your no-claim discount

    For every year you don't make a claim, you'll likely reduce the cost of your premium.

  6. Don't over-insure

    Overestimating the value of your contents and the rebuild cost of your home will increase your premium. But if you're in any doubt, it's better to overestimate than underestimate.

  7. Only pay for what you need

    You'll be offered a variety of optional extras when you apply for home insurance. Remember the best home insurance policy for you is one that offers the cover you need at an affordable price.

  8. Pay upfront

    With monthly payments, you'll have to pay interest and sometimes a finance arrangement fee, so it'll be more expensive.

Looking for something else?

If you need something more specific than standard buildings and contents insurance, there are many other options available:

Flood risk insurance

Flood risk insurance can be a valuable investment for those looking to protect their home and contents from damage by flooding.

Subsidence insurance

If your property has a history of subsidence, getting insurance may be tricky and you’ll probably need to go to a specialist provider.

Unoccupied property insurance

Cover for properties left unoccupied for more than 30 days can be costly and hard to find. Specialist unoccupied property insurance helps you find cover for properties left vacant for up to 12 months.

Listed building insurance

You’ll need to tell your insurer if your home is listed. You may find your choice of insurers more limited. Make sure you declare an accurate rebuild value.

Non-standard construction home insurance

If your home is made from non-standard materials, you may require specialist home insurance. Features such as thatched roofs or timber-frames are widely viewed as non-standard by insurers.

Flat roof home insurance

Flat roof homes can be more expensive to insure than standard homes. This is because insurers consider flat roof homes to be at higher risk of water ingress, weather damage and burglary.

Why compare home insurance with us?

Free £250 home excess cover, only with GoCompare^

If you need to claim on your home insurance - for example, if your building is damaged by subsidence or your possessions are stolen - your free home excess cover will refund up to £250 of your excess.

There’s no hidden charge. But you won't be covered for things like accidental loss or damage.

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Top tip from our expert

Check your home insurance policy to ensure that you have the proper cover should your home be damage by adverse weather conditions, whether that be rain, wind or snow.

Cover can vary widely, so check the details of your policy carefully. If you don’t have the cover you need, we always recommend comparing your home insurance options online, as this is the quickest way to compare the options available to you and find a policy that suits your needs – as well as your budget.
Ceri McMillan - GoCompare Home Insurance expert

Over 3000 home insurance customers rated us on average[2]

4.8 out of 5

on Trustpilot

Reviews from our customers

01/02/2023

Found a great deal for affordable home insurance.

Catherine

28/01/2023

Go compare halved the cost of my household insurance

Ulla Adilz

24/01/2023

Excellent prices and the free £250 excess is handy should I need to use it.

Mr Paul Morgan

23/01/2023

Managed to get home insurance for quite a bit cheaper then my renewal quote so happy

Jill Barker



Page last reviewed: 15 March 2023
Page reviewed by Ceri McMillan

^UK residents and home insurance purchases only. Excess refunded after claim settled. Excludes accidental loss or damage claims made on your home insurance. Full T&Cs apply.

*[1]The average price paid annually for home insurance purchased in September 2022 by type of cover. For buildings and contents insurance, it was £190. For buildings insurance only, it was £146. For contents insurance only, it was £74.

[2]Based on Trustpilot: Our average rating of 4.8 out of 5 is from 3116 people who left a review for home insurance comparison only. Last checked 02 February 2023.

[3]As of January 2023, there are 68 active home insurers on the panel at GoCompare

[4]Figures based on a survey of 2091 randomly selected Great British adults was executed by Maru/Blue conducted between 16th-19th September 2022. For comparison purposes, a probability sample of this size has an estimated margin of error (which measures sampling variability) of +/- 2.1%. The results have been weighted by age, gender, region and social grade to match the population, according to Census data. This is to ensure the sample is representative of the entire adult population of Great Britain. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.

[5]Average price paid annually for buildings and contents insurance returned from all customers quoting in September 2022 through GoCompare.

[6]According to data from GoCompare, 9060 customers stated previous claims for escape of water when they compared quotes between 1 August 2022 and 31st October 2022.

[7]The average value of household possessions on combined home insurance policies bought through GoCompare in September 2022

[8]Based on GoCompare home insurance quotes made between 1 November 2021 and 31 October 2022. Excludes customers where no quote was returned and test quotes.