Home insurance
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**Based on Online independent research by Consumer Intelligence during May 2019 50% of customers could save up to £90.48 on their home insurance premium.
What is home insurance?
Home insurance (or house insurance) protects you from insured events that damage your home or your belongings. If your home is damaged or destroyed in a fire for example, then having the right insurance could mean the insurance provider will pay to replace your belongings and repair or rebuild your home.
Home insurance is made up of buildings insurance and contents insurance, which can be bought separately or together from the same provider.
What does home insurance cover?
Home insurance typically protects your home and your possessions inside it against theft and damage due to fire, flood, storms, subsidence, burst pipes and water leaks.
Want to know more? Read about...
>> Find out more about contents insurance
>> Insuring your home against subsidence
>> How security systems can protect your home
What’s the difference between buildings and contents insurance?
Buildings insurance covers the physical structure of your property, including the roof, walls and floors.
Buildings insurance also includes any permanent fixtures and fittings, such as your kitchen and fitted wardrobes. Outside structures, like fences, garages and sheds are usually covered too, as are pipes, cables and drains connected to your home (provided they’re your legal responsibility).
Contents insurance covers the items inside your home, such as your furniture and clothes.
Contents insurance covers anything within your home that you could remove and take with you to another property – so your clothes, furniture, fridge and television (carpets are also usually included). There are some exceptions to this rule, so always check what’s included in the definition of ‘contents’ in your policy booklet.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to have home insurance?
Neither buildings insurance nor contents insurance are a legal requirement. On the other hand, it’s always advisable to have both. It means you have protection for your property and belongings in case something unexpected happens.
If you own your home and have a mortgage, then your mortgage provider may insist you have buildings insurance in place for the length of your mortgage. You can buy this insurance from any provider, not just your mortgage provider.
What type of home insurance do I need?
Buildings or contents insurance – or both? It’s essential to have the right type of home insurance for your particular situation, so here are the basics in a nutshell.
- If you own your own home, you’re responsible for both buildings and contents insurance. Like we said earlier, it’s advisable to have both.
- If you’re renting, then buildings insurance is usually the responsibility of your landlord, but it’s advisable to have contents insurance to protect your personal belongings. Find out more about rental contents insurance.
- If you’re a landlord you’re responsible for buildings insurance to cover the property you own and rent out. If you rent out a furnished property, you can also take out contents insurance to cover your belongings against damage or theft. Find out more about landlord insurance.
- If you have a holiday home, both buildings and contents insurance can be more expensive than regular home insurance. This is because holiday homes are often left unoccupied, meaning problems like a burst pipe might go undetected for longer and cause more damage. Find out more about unoccupied property insurance.
How can I make my home insurance cheaper?
There are a few simple steps you can take to try to reduce the cost of your home insurance:
- Shop around: Every time your contents and/or buildings insurance comes up for renewal, run a fresh quote at Compare the Market. You may well find a company that can offer you a lower premium than your current provider.
- Consider a combined policy: If you need contents and buildings insurance, you might pay less if you get both from the same provider.
- Boost security: Using locks on your doors and windows and installing a burglar alarm may help keep your premium low.
- Avoid instalments: If you can afford it, pay your premium upfront in one go. If you opt to pay in monthly instalments, you might be charged interest on top.
How much does home insurance cost?
Buildings insurance could cost from
£106 per year^^
Contents insurance could cost from
£67 per year^^
Combined insurance could cost from
£139 per year^^
^^50% of customers achieved a quote of the above amounts based on Compare the Market data in May 2019.
The cost of home insurance is determined by a number of factors. With buildings insurance, the price is calculated according to how much your house would cost to rebuild, plus your postcode. With contents insurance, the value of your possessions and where you live are the main considerations. In both cases, whether you have made claims in the past will also be taken into account.
Start a quote
What do I need to get a quote?
When you start a home insurance quote with us, it’s a good idea to have some basic information about your property, including:
• Your current home insurance policy documents
• Details about your property
• The rebuild value of your home
• The level of cover you need
We’ll ask you questions to make sure we have all the information we need to provide you with a list of suitable quotes.
The list will also show you optional extras you might want to consider, such as accidental damage insurance.
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**Based on Online independent research by Consumer Intelligence during May 2019 50% of customers could save up to £90.48 on their home insurance premium.
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Chris King
Home insurance expert
What our expert says
"Your home and your belongings deserve the best insurance cover you can find. With protection in place, you have the peace of mind of knowing you can claim if something happens, such as a burglary or flood damage. But I always say prevention is better than cure, and if you take certain steps you can reduce the likelihood of a problem arising and potentially cut the size of your insurance bill. For example, fitting an alarm to your house might be a great way to lower your premium."
Home insurance providers
We compare 76 of the UK’s home insurance providers to help you get the best possible quote. We’ve compiled this home insurance provider hub to help you compare UK home insurance providers’ individual policies to make sure you can find the policy that’s right for you.
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