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Understand what’s covered by home contents insurance

Written by Posted On Tuesday, 20 November 2018 01:17
Home insurance policy Home insurance policy Home insurance policy

Home insurance comes in various forms. Finding an affordable home insurance policy that suits your needs can be difficult. With expert help, you can zero in on the right policy for your home. Here are some tips from specialists in the field to help clarify your doubts and make your search easier.

Find out what's covered
Most people don't know what is covered under their home insurance policy. You should find out before signing a contract. For instance, many folks are unaware that their belongings are covered under a home contents insurance policy even while they're traveling abroad. Check your policy documents to find out what's covered and what's excluded. As policies differ in the details, make sure that you read your policy carefully or call a company representative to ask about the specific terms and conditions of your policy.

Research and buy your own policy
When you apply for a mortgage, the bank usually encourages you to take a building cover. They usually offer the mortgage along with an insurance policy from their own group company or someone that has a tie up with them. These policies may be expensive, and yet not quite what you need. Research online to find a good cover for the amount you pay. The banks and building societies cannot force you to buy the policy that they recommend. They can only insist that you have a policy that covers the cost of rebuilding your home.

Get an estimate for the right policy
When buying a home insurance policy, be sure to have the correct estimate for the cost of re-building and also the replacement cost of all important and valuable contents in your home. Without these estimates, you'll have no clue about the amount to quote for the home contents part of the policy. Certain policies offer a blanket cover of half a million pounds. It is wiser, however, to have an estimate of what the contents in your home are worth because insurers will use this figure to calculate the premium on your policy.

Monitor annual rise in your policy premium
Every year, as the cost of rebuilding goes up, the insurance company will hike up your premium. Keep a close watch on the yearly increase and seek clarification from the company representative if your rates suddenly increase too much.

Items covered under home insurance
The obvious choices of items to cover under a home insurance policy include furniture, electronic gadgets, appliances, kitchen items, jewellery, books and other collections. Other items that are typically covered include contents of your freezer, garden ornaments, items in the outer buildings, damage sustained due to emergency services, legal cover in case you need it, cover for water leaks and damage sustained due to this as well as any home emergencies which makes your home uninhabitable. Many home owners don't know that all these items can be covered under your home contents policy. You can check with your insurer about which of these items will be covered.

Don't underestimate the value of your contents
When it comes to valuing the contents of a home, most homeowners tend to underestimate the value of their possessions. Sometimes they overlook certain valuables. People often forget purchases made in the recent past, and therefore pay too little or too much for home insurance in proportion to the actual value of their home's contents. Keep the list of contents up-to-date and find out which items will be covered by the insurer and which ones will not.

If you leave high-value items unprotected in your garage, shed or out-houses, they'll not be covered under the home insurance policy of the main household. Any small valuable like jewellery is better-off in a safe.

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Marinus Nutma

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