Home Insurance Coverage Guide: Inclusions & Optional Add-Ons

Home insurance is important for protecting your money. It helps homeowners, renters, and landlords when they have unexpected damages or losses. Home insurance can cover many risks, such as fire, theft, accidental damage, and subsidence. You might ask what home insurance includes. You may also want to know how to ensure you have enough cover for your home and belongings. This guide will describe common home insurance policies, different types of cover available, and optional add-ons. With this information, you can make the best choice for you.

What Are the Main Types of Home Insurance?

There are two main types of home insurance: buildings insuranceand contents insurance. Some companies offer a combined policythat covers both types.

Buildings Insurance Cover

Buildings insurance is there to protect the structure of your home. This includes fixtures and fittings that are fixed or permanent. Having this insurance is important if you are a homeowner or a freeholder. Many lenders will ask for buildings insurance as a legal requirement when they give you a loan.

What Does Buildings Insurance Cover?

• A building includes parts like walls, roofs, floors, windows, and doors.
• Fixtures and fittings are things like kitchen cabinets and bathroom setups.
• There are buildings not connected to the main structure, such as garages and sheds.
• Structures that show the boundary are fences and gates.
• It is important to guard against subsidence, fire, floods, storm damage, and vandalism.

Buildings insurancepolicies can offer home emergency cover. This cover helps pay for fast repairs, such as boiler breakdowns or plumbing problems.

Contents Insurance Cover

Contents insurance protects your belongings at home. It covers all the items you would take with you if you moved. This insurance is very important for renters and leaseholders. A landlord usually does not cover a tenant’s personal possessions.

What Does Contents Insurance Cover?

• Furniture, such as sofas, beds, and wardrobes.
• Jewellery, watches, and other valuable items.
• Laptops, mobile phones, and other gadgets.
• Clothes, books, and items for the home.
• Theft, fire, water damage, and accidental damage (if you include it in your policy).

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How Much Home Insurance Do You Need?

The amount of insurance you need depends on several things. This includes the size of your home, the value of your belongings, and any additional risks you want to protect against.

Buildings Insurance: How Much is Enough Cover?

Your buildings insuranceshould cover the complete cost to rebuild your home. This cost is known as the rebuild cost. It may be less than how much your home would sell for in the market. The Association of British Insurers (ABI)has a rebuild cost calculator. This tool can help you determine the right amount you need.

Contents Insurance: Are You Underinsured?

Many people don’t understand the true value of their belongings. This may cause them to have too little insurance. To prevent this:

• Make a list of your home items. Try to estimate how much it would cost to replace each one.
• Carefully check your policy documents for any exclusions.
• Consider getting accidental damage cover if you have valuable items.

What Additional Cover Can You Get?

Standard home insurance policies provide basic coverage. However, you might want to enhance your policy with optional add-ons.

Accidental Damage Cover

This includes accidental damage to your fittings, furniture, or electronics. For example, it covers things like spilling coffee on a laptop or breaking a window.

Home Emergency Cover

It offers fast help for important home problems. This can be things like a burst pipe, a broken boiler, or a pest issue. Some plans also pay for legal costs.

Personal Possessions Cover

This includes protection for important things taken outside the house. This covers jewellery, laptops, and mobile phones.

Legal Expenses Cover

It helps pay for legal costs related to property disputes, issues at work, and claims for personal injury.

What Are Common Home Insurance Exclusions?

Home insurance does not protect against all risks. The exclusionscan be different with each insurer. They might include:

• Wear and tear– a gradual loss over time.
• Negligence– failure to take care of the property.
• Certain weather events, such as floods in high-risk areas.
• Acts of war or terrorism.
• Damage caused by vermin or pests.
• Damage done by tenants (in landlord insurance plans).

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Does Home Insurance Cover Landlords and Tenants?

Homeowners and Freeholders

If you own a home, you should have buildings insurance. You may also consider getting contents insurance if you own valuable items.

Leaseholders

If you own a leasehold property, the freeholderor management company usually handles the buildings insurance. However, leaseholders still need to get contents insurance for their personal belongings.

Landlords

Landlords should have special insurance for their properties. This type of insurance usually covers the building, provides liability coverage for landlords, and includes protection for lost rent. The lost rent coverage is helpful if tenants are unable to pay rent due to damage to the property.

How Can You Reduce Home Insurance Costs?

Home insurance premiums depend on how risky your property is. You can save money by:

• Install security systems and alarms.
• Increase your voluntary excess.
• Merge policies for buildings and contents insurance.
• Avoid small claims that might raise your premium.
• Search for discounts like no-claims bonuses.

Correct as of 24 February 2025

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