Home Insurance for the more complex!

Most people can arrange their home insurance very easily with a few “clicks” or a phone call.

However, you may have more complex requirements or may prefer a more face to face service.    You may not “fit” a standard home insurance policy and may have a concern in the back of your mind that your insurance might not pay out if you have to make a claim.

If you own a large house with expensive contents, fine art, antiques or jewellery, you are probably not interested in making small claims but do want to be sure that you have a policy which will pay out with a minimum of fuss. To help achieve this, there are a number of things to consider, which might be a help.

Getting sums insured correct

  • Most potential clients I see are under-insured and if that includes you, it means that if you make a claim, you could receive less than you claim for.   For example, if your contents are insured for £100,000 but would actually cost £200,000 to replace, then a claim for fire damage to a room costing £20,000, could be reduced to £10,000 by the insurer.
  • The price of gold has increased dramatically over the past few years. Have your reviewed the values of your jewellery and watches as a result?

Solutions:

Policy Limits

  • Many standard home insurance policies have relatively low financial limits in respect of claims for:
    • Valuables (antiques, paintings, silver etc)
    • Jewellery
    • Contents in outbuildings
    • Contents in the open
    • Belongings taken on holiday
    • Escape of oil

Solutions

  • Discuss specific requirements with a broker when they visit the home.
  • Select a policy with a high single item limit which means expensive items are less likely to be out-paced by increasing costs.

Security

Do you know a five lever mortice deadlock from a rim lock?   If not and your insurer requires a minimum standard of security, you could find yourslef without theft insurance.   In addition, it can be very easy to forget to lock that door or to leave a ground floor window unlocked at night after a hot day. Both could lead to a claim being turned down.

Solutions

  • Ask a broker to review security.
  • Select a policy that takes into account good security but does not penalise you if you forget to operate it.

Two final tips

  • Take several photos of each room and store them away from the house. It’s much easier for an insurer to deal with a claim when they can see what was damaged or stolen.
  • Install a fire extinguisher on each floor of the house – they are now much less expensive and could save a life.

We can offer you:

  • A free no obligation review of current insurance arrangements and a report on possible alternatives.
  • Guidance on risk management issues
  • Advice about the adequacy of security devices.

 

For more information, please CLICK HERE or call 01527 306 041.