Standard contents insurance generally includes cover for your furniture; soft furnishings, like curtains and carpets; personal items, like books/CDs/DVDs; your electronics equipment, computers, televisions; clothing, jewellery and other items up to a set limit. Unlike buildings insurance, home contents insurance isn’t mandatory, purchasing it is up to the individual.

What to expect

Once the excess is met, a good home contents insurance policy will provide for all of your household possessions in the event of damage, loss or theft. Events covered include natural occurrences, such as flood or fire, as well as acts of intrusion like burglary or vandalism. In addition, a home contents insurance policy should cover non-natural events, for example major water/gas leaks or explosions.

Things to look for

Cover for accidental damage varies by insurer, so it is important to check the specifics of your policy. For valuables that are frequently taken out of the home, mobile phones, jewellery, cameras and even some sports equipment, an ‘all risks extension’ can be added to your policy at an extra cost.

Other insurance you might want to consider is accidental injury or third party property damage, which covers guests or visitors to your home. Flexible cover increases at those times of the year when you usually have more items in your home, like Christmas and some policies can be extended to cover your children’s possessions when they live away from home, for example when they go to university.

The first major step to reducing monthly premiums is to compare home insurance across a range of companies. Doing so can highlight particular areas where money can be saved, and with such a competitive market, significant savings can often be made. Using comparison websites allows easy identification of the best deals, whilst also providing important insight into a company’s services.

Meanwhile a large number of insurance firms will reduce monthly premiums if certain steps are taken around the house to reduce the possibility of a claim. Both building insurance and contents insurance can be affected by the security of a property, so it is important to ensure that preventative steps are taken. Burglar alarms can be installed in addition to motion detecting lights, whilst locks can be applied to windows and doors. The use of fire alarms will bring down the risk of large fire damage, whilst insulating piping can prevent pipes bursting in colder months.

Such steps can significantly affect monthly household insurance costs, as households which have taken such measures are seen as less likely to make a claim. So before you cancel that insurance policy completely, take steps to reduce your premiums while remaining financially protected.

Unfortunately, that home insurance policy won’t do much good if it provides insufficient coverage to the cost of your home and goods, has lapsed, or doesn’t account for situational circumstances and inflation.  What’s the point of paying for a policy that won’t assist you when you need it the most? Sadly, this is the biggest mistake homeowners make with house insurance.

It is essential that you keep your coverage up to date and of adequate value.  Some providers will automatically adjust your sum insured for inflation, or even during the gift-giving Christmas holidays.  Never assume that your home insurance policy automatically does anything; always check and re-check to be sure.

When you acquire new goods, such as a flat screen television or an expensive piece of jewellery, you should always report this additional item to your contents insurance provider.  The same goes for money spent improving your home’s structure.  A new heating system or improvements to the interior of a home can increase the cost to rebuild your home, and it is then necessary to adjust the sum insured on your buildings insurance. While these changes may raise your insurance premiums, failing to accurately report changes to your coverage amount could have disastrous consequences if damage occurs.

To encourage consumers to buy insurance online, insurers often offer discounts or other special deals for the internet user. It used to take hours or even days to compare buildings insurance rates. You had to call various companies and spend hours on the phone giving and getting information. Now you can fill out one form and get insurance quotes from several vendors almost immediately.

Some companies offer as much as 20% off for those who choose to buy online. Not to mention that the coverage can be immediate, which is of benefit to those who have waited until the very last moment to purchase home insurance, (usually just before closing on a mortgage)?

The one thing you must be careful of when purchasing home insurance online is to be sure to read the fine print and understand exactly what is and is not covered. If you have any type of special needs, it would be in your best interest to talk to the insurer directly and then go ahead and make an online purchase when you are ready.

Under building insurance, you will be protected against disasters such as fire, lightning, storm damage, falling trees, explosions, plumbing damage, earthquakes, subsidence, vehicular accidents, or vandalism and burglary.  When such disasters occur, the household insurance provider will pay for your home to be repaired, rebuilt, or replaced, depending on the level of damage suffered.

To get the most accurate amount of coverage, you should consult an agency such as the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors for a professional estimate of the sum insured.  Chartered surveyors can more easily perform these calculations after surveying your home and property.  The sum insured is based not on the market value of your home, but on the actual cost of rebuilding your home from the ground up.

For unique or historic homes, extra coverage might be needed to rebuild that style of home, so purchase a home insurance policy that matches your needs.  To obtain a better estimate of your home’s rebuild cost, visit the Association of British Insurers’ website for more information.

One of the first things you need to look at is the price.  There are always some policies that are vastly overpriced, but do not make the mistake of believing that a cheaper policy offers you less.  This is not necessarily the case.  Insurance policies are becoming cheaper all the time as more companies come into the marketplace and start vying for your business.   As long as a cheaper policy offers you all the cover that you need then opting for that is fine. 

The level of cover is very important.  If you only have an accidental damage clause on your policy that covers you for a few hundred pounds then that is no use if you have valuable items in your house.  The cover has to match your needs otherwise you are paying for a policy that will not really help you in an emergency. 

You also need to check the excess amount that is applied.  Different sections of the policy may have different excess levels so you need to be aware of what each one is and check that you could afford to pay the excess in the event of a claim.  If not you may have to consider a policy with a lower excess, but this is likely to make the premiums higher.

The amount your policy will cover is typically different from the retail or real estate value of your home.  Instead, building insurance covers the cost of rebuilding your property from the ground up, assuming nothing is left.  Considering that many disasters, such as explosions, fires, or severe floods, could possibly wipe out your home in its entirety, this extensive coverage is important.

But how can you determine what the sum insured will be for your building insurance policy?  It is possible to calculate the sum with the help of the Association of British Insurers website, but it’s quite complicated.  If you’d rather an expert determine the sum insured, consult an agency such as the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors for a professional estimate.  Chartered surveyors can more easily perform these calculations after surveying your home and property; at a price of course.

While some companies do offer unlimited coverage, most of the affordable household insurance plans are based on a calculated value only.  Other providers provide coverage based on an estimated value, which they determine by the location of your home and other property details.  Compare home insurance to find the best plan for your needs.

Many homeowners are actually under-insured when they make a claim, according to Prime Location, a leading insurance website.  This is largely due to the fact that many homeowners buy a plan when they purchase a home but fail to update their buildings and contents insurance amounts to reflect new goods and items, as well as yearly rises in inflation.  Some policies may update your coverage amount automatically, but if you don’t have such a program, it is up to you as the homeowner to adjust your house insurance accordingly.

Some homeowners neglect to include nearby structures that need to be protected when purchasing buildings insurance. Sheds, garages, fences and gates, swimming pools, and other structures can often be covered by the same building insurance plan that protects your home’s structure.  Likewise, homeowners that neglect to purchase a thorough and accurate contents insurance plan may be unpleasantly surprised when fire or flood destroys their possessions and they aren’t covered for the damages.

To ensure you have enough coverage, keep accurate lists of the contents of your home and always make appropriate updates for inflation, new possessions, and new building projects.

Some insurers have a specific ‘tenants insurance’ that you can arrange.  You may also be able to cover your liability if you personally cause any damage to the property that you are living in.  As with all house insurance policies, the details will vary for each insurance company. You will need to check your policy documents carefully to determine the actual level of cover you have. 

As you are a tenant, there may be occasions when either tradesmen or your landlord need to gain entry to the house or flat when you are absent (in the event of a water leak, for example). If you have valuable items then you should take care to lock them away just for added peace of mind as if they are stolen or damaged then it may be more difficult to claim on the grounds that they were easily accessible.

As with other house insurance policies, tenant’s contents insurance can be arranged so that your valuable items can be listed and covered individually and you will be charged an excess in the event of a claim.  You will also find that your quote varies depending on the area you are living in and the measures taken to prevent loss and damage.  The more preventative measures both you and your landlord take; the better your chances of obtaining a cheaper policy.

Whilst all homeowners should have building insurance to protect the structure of their home, for people who have a host of properties for development or rental purposes, the need is even greater. The likelihood of something going wrong increases the more properties that are held and, whilst unlikely, there is the possibility that damage could affect more than one home at any time, sending financial costs soaring. It is therefore imperative that all those who hold a property portfolio invest in adequate insurance to cover building damage at a minimum.

For landlords, only building insurance may be required. In the majority of cases tenants will be expected to take out their own contents insurance, and whilst landlords may seek cheap house insurance quotes to cover furniture, having insurance to financially protect the property structure is normally all that is needed. Developers on the other hand may need to find home insurance quotes for both buildings and contents. Upgrading a property may result in significant finances being put into both structural changes, and the furnishings. In addition, expensive equipment may be left on site which could be subject to damage and theft.

It is therefore extremely important for any owner of more than one property to ensure that they have adequate house insurance for all residences. With financial costs able to rise significantly higher than normal, having household insurance is paramount.