What is Home Insurance?
Home insurance consists of two elements:
Buildings insurance is designed to cover the cost of damage to the structural elements of the property. This also includes garages, sheds and fences, and will cover the cost of replacing items such as pipes, cables and drains. Your buildings insurance should cover the full cost of rebuilding your home.
Contents insurance will cover the cost of replacing or repairing your possessions should they be damaged or stolen. It will cover you for the possessions you would take with you when moving home. This includes furniture, kitchen appliances, curtains, bedding, clothing, television, computing equipment and jewellery.
Do you need Home Insurance?
If you plan on purchasing a property with a mortgage, it is a mandatory condition of the lender for Buildings Insurance to be in place on exchange of the property.
Most underwriters will offer a discounted rate to take both the Buildings & Contents combined, rather than two separate policies.
Buildings Insurance
This form of insurance is compulsory if you are purchasing your home with a mortgage. The lender will insist upon the insurance being in place prior to contracts being exchanged.
Buildings Insurance will cover the cost of damage to the structure of your property. Buildings insurance would typically cover damage or loss caused by:
- explosion, fire, floods, earthquakes, and storms
- vandalism, theft, and attempted theft
- frozen pipes and burst pipes
- fallen lamp posts, trees, aerials, or satellite dishes
- subsidence or vehicle collisions
Contents Insurance
Contents Insurance is designed to cover the cost of replacing your belongings if they are lost, stolen or damaged. Contents Insurance is usually a requirement if you are renting a property.
How do you define contents?
If you moved home, what are the items you could take with you? These are effectively items that are not fixed to the structure of the property.
These include but are not limited to:
- sofas, beds, wardrobes, dining tables and chairs
- cutlery, cookware, kettles and microwaves
- DVDs, toys, and video games
- cushions, curtains and bedding
- laptops, TVs and games consoles
- clothes, jewellery and watches
Optional Extras
Home Emergency Cover – This would cover the cost if a sudden incident needed the attention of a tradesman, such as your boiler breaking down or a blockage in your only toilet.
Buildings Accidental Damage – Covers you for accidental damage that you are responsible for, such as putting your foot through the ceiling or drilling through a pipe.
Contents Accidental Damage – Covers you for accidental damage that you are responsible for, such as spilling paint on a rug or smashing a lamp.
Legal Expenses Cover – Covers you for any legal costs towards disputes, such as boundary disputes, employment disputes or faulty goods.
Free Home Insurance Quote
We have access to some of the UK’s largest underwriters and therefore have the ability to compare different policy features there and then. We will ask you some questions about your property and possessions to establish exactly what’s important to you.
This can be done via an appointment in the office, a Zoom call or a telephone call. If you would like to discuss your home insurance options, simply book an appointment or call a member of the team.
MORTGAGENEEDS.INFO LTD TRADING AS MORTGAGE & INSURANCE NEEDS ACT AS A CREDIT BROKER NOT A LENDER FOR BUILDINGS AND CONTENTS