Are you correctly insured?
There is a lot more to consider than simply putting your details into a comparison site and looking through the terms of the top results.  Competitive pricing may mean that the extent of cover isn’t as vast as you would hope in times of need, of course the level of insurance will vary from person to person, but there are a few key points to double check to make sure you are correctly insured.

Buildings

Is the building’s sum enough to cover the whole rebuild of your home? Will the amount you’re insured cover the costs of; outbuildings, walls, paths, materials, labour, professional fees and VAT?

The building’s sum will vary depending on; age, size, location and type of property you have, all of these factors are key on determining the rebuild value and online calculators tend to provide generic quotes which could leave you underinsured.

According to Hiscox, 65% of buildings that were valued were found to be on average 45% underinsured.

Trace and Access

This is generally removed from cheaper policies but if the situation arose it could end up being quite expensive if you didn’t have it.

For example; if you have a leak in your property an insurer is only responsible for repairing the leak and water damage. However, if the leak was behind a bath or under the floor the cost for pulling the bath out and putting it back or pulling the floor up isn’t covered and unless you have trace an access cover you would have to pay the cost yourself.

Contents

Do you have the right contents cover and have you reviewed the total amount of contents needed?

Contents should cover just about everything that you would take with you if you moved house, have you calculated the replacement costs as new for all of your items?

The most commonly forgot items to include in contents;

  • Clothes, shoes and handbags
  • Curtains, carpets, soft furnishings, lighting and linen
  • Outside sculptures, tools and gardening equipment
  • Kitchen equipment
  • Items stored in lofts/attics, garages and summerhouses
  • Sporting equipment

Accidental Damage

Is accidental damage covered in your contents, it is assumed that it is automatically involved but it isn’t in all cases. It is definitely worth reviewing and finding out of you are covered especially if you have young children where more accidents and spillages will occur.

Personal Possessions

These are items covered away from home; for loss, theft or accidental damage and the majority of insurers offer personal possessions cover alongside the standard buildings and contents cover.

Have you reviewed your cover or do you know if you have personal possessions cover?

If you do have it – do you know the limits? Some insurers can restrict the amount of cover for items such as; mobile phones, tablets, jewellery etc. With families having an increased amount of portable items it is worth checking you are covered, as many insurers will not pay out on tablets, mobiles or gaming consoles for accidental damage unless you have personal possessions cover.

Valuables Limit

Do you know how much your valuables are covered for? 

Each insurer has a different maximum amount of cover for valuable items, such as; watches, jewellery, antiques, collections etc.

Have you reviewed your cover to make sure you are not under insured? The price of gold has increased which means the price of your valuables has as well – will your cover pay out the full amount? Have you purchased anything since your policy that isn’t under the cover?

What to do next;

  1. Read your insurance documents – and find out exactly what level of cover you currently have for your buildings and contents
  2. Calculate your contents – it’s easy to under-estimate the value of your contents
  3. Check your Jewellery & Watches – (valuables) cover – and ensure that higher value items are individually specified, ensure that you have a valuation and that it is less than three years’ old
  4. Take photographs – of each of your rooms as well as higher value items.
  5. Count the cost of a rebuild – speak to us to see if we can organise a buildings appraisal, possibly paid for by your insurer.
  6. Keep your insurance up to date – it’s usually a good idea to review your buildings and contents insurance cover at least once a year
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