Home insurance

While home insurance isn’t a legal necessity, a valid buildings insurance policy may be required by your mortgage provider. Even if this isn’t the case, not having the appropriate cover in place can leave you and your family vulnerable.

Your home is probably your most valuable possession, and it’s filled with things that are important to you and your family, so keeping it safe and secure makes sense. While the risks of theft, accidents and natural disasters can’t be eliminated, home insurance can reduce their impact, as it allows you to replace your damaged or lost possessions without being entirely out of pocket.

A no-claims discount or bonus is a reward for not claiming on your home insurance. It gives you a reduction on your premiums when you renew your home insurance.

The discount builds up and becomes more valuable the more years you go without claiming on your insurance. No-claims discounts vary from insurer to insurer. It can be up to 30 per cent for the first year, increasing to as much as 60 per cent after around five years.

Before claiming on your home insurance, you should weigh up the cost of paying for the fix or replacement yourself against the cost of the increased premiums from losing your accumulated no-claims discount.

Many insurance providers offer discounts to customers who bundle several products together, such as car insurance and home cover. These include Admiral and LV. You should still check that a combined policy from a particular provider is cheaper than taking the policies out separately from different providers, however.

Aside from any potential savings, combining products has several advantages, including:

• Streamlining your bills: with only one payment leaving your bank account, it’s easier to keep track of your finances
• Pay a single excess: if your home and vehicle are both damaged due to the same incident, such as a fire, some insurers will only ask for one excess payment. If your policies aren’t combined, you would need to pay two excesses to two different providers
• One account: both your car and home cover can be managed from one account

Installing a smart home security system can potentially reduce home insurance premiums with some providers. Insurance companies often view homes with security systems as less likely to experience theft, vandalism, or other property damage. This decreased risk can lead to lower insurance premiums for homeowners.

It’s important to note that the discount amount will vary depending on the insurance company, the specific smart home security system, and other factors related to your home and location.

Joining a Neighbourhood Watch scheme can potentially lower your home insurance premiums. Such programmes involve community members working together to report suspicious activities and help prevent crime in their neighbourhoods.

Insurance companies often view these programmes as an effective way to reduce crime rates and improve community safety. However, the impact on your insurance premiums will depend on your specific insurance provider and their policies.

Home emergency cover isn’t essential, but it can be useful if you think you might find it difficult to pay for any emergency repairs to your home you might need.

It typically includes situations such as a boiler breakdown or central heating failure, plumbing problems such as a burst pipe or blocked drains, electrical failure, broken doors and windows, and roof damage that needs immediate attention. It won’t cover incidents caused by a lack of maintenance on your part (such as a boiler that hasn’t been serviced within a certain period of time) or anything resulting from normal wear and tear.

Accidental damage cover as part of your buildings insurance will provide cover for items that are part of the structure of your home or fixed fittings. For example, if you knock a glass off a shelf and it cracks your bathroom sink, or if a football smashes your window, it’s likely to be covered.

Under accidental damage cover in contents insurance, incidents like knocking a TV over, cracking a glass coffee table or spilling red wine on a carpet or sofa are likely to be covered.

Whether or not you need accidental damage cover can depend on the makeup of your household, for example if you have pets or children.

If you need to make a home insurance claim, follow these tips to maximise your chances of success:

1. Make a list of what items have been damaged or stolen. Gather together any evidence that could help your claim, such as receipts and photographs of the items before they were lost or broken.
2. Get your paperwork together. Find your insurance policy documents, because you’ll need those to make a claim. You should also read them to make sure what you want to claim for is covered.
3. Call your insurer as soon as possible. The damage or loss will be fresh in your mind, which will help you make your claim. Also, the sooner the insurer knows about the claim, the quicker it can get it settled and pay out.
4. Don’t throw away damaged items. Your insurer may want to professionally assess them. If you need to throw them away for health reasons, take photographs of them first. You should also take photographs of any other damage as soon as possible.
5. Consider a loss assessor. For large claims where the insurer may be reluctant to pay out, an assessor will independently judge the value of your claim.
6. Get works approved. Make sure you ask your insurer to approve any repair works before you start. If you just go ahead without approval, the insurer is not guaranteed to cover the cost. You can get temporary repairs done to stop the damage getting worse and keep the receipts to use as part of your claim but it’s still best to call your insurer first.