Accidental damage insurance

Protect your home and belongings with accidental damage insurance and enjoy fantastic rewards, on us.*

Start a quote Go to your account

We compare prices from 37 trusted home insurance providers^[2], including:

See a full list of our home insurance providers

^[3]Correct as of December 2024.

What is accidental damage insurance?

Accidental damage insurance helps cover the cost of repairing or replacing items accidentally damaged at home. To be covered, the damage must result from a sudden and unexpected event – it can’t be done on purpose, or arise from wear and tear or poor maintenance.

Accidental damage cover is usually an optional add-on to your home contents insurance and/or your buildings insurance for an extra fee. Some more comprehensive policies may include it as standard, but they could be more expensive.

What does accidental damage insurance cover?

Accidental damage insurance covers all sorts of mishaps, from kicking a football through a window to spilling red wine on the sofa. Some types of accidental damage fall under buildings insurance; others come under contents insurance.

Accidental damage buildings insurance

Accidental damage insurance for buildings can cover unintentional and unforeseen damage to your home’s structure, plus any permanent fixtures and fittings.

Buildings accidental damage cover typically includes:

Broken glass in windows, doors, conservatories and greenhouses
Unintentional holes in walls, ceilings and floorboards
Damage to toilets, sinks and other bathroom fittings
Damage to kitchen units, including built-in appliances
Damage to solar panels
Damage to drains, pipes and cables
Broken locks or keys
Cracked tiles.

Contents insurance accidental damage

Contents insurance with accidental damage cover protects your belongings at home.

Contents insurance accidental damage cover typically includes damage to your:

Laptop, mobile phone or tablet
TV and stereo system
Furniture and carpets
Ceramic hobs on freestanding cookers
Vases, mirrors and ornaments
Jewellery and watches
Belongings while moving house (if you use a professional)
Items in your home that are damaged by children.

What doesn’t accidental damage insurance cover?

Accidental damage insurance won’t usually cover:

Age-related degeneration or general wear and tear
Electrical breakdown or mechanical failure
Damage by vermin or insects
Chewing, tearing, scratching or fouling by pets
Fungus
Defective building materials or poor workmanship
Deliberate damage
Items you take with you when you’re out and about – for that you need personal possessions cover
High-risk or high-value items that weren’t declared – check the terms to make sure your valuables and tech are covered
Homes left unoccupied for long periods of time (often more than 30 or 60 days)
Homes with tenants, lodgers or paying guests – you need landlord insurance for that
Accidental damage to items not covered by your policy.

Is accidental damage cover worth it?

As the saying goes, accidents happen.

Having accidental damage cover in place means you won’t be left out of pocket fixing any mishaps. It could be well worth considering if you tend to be accident-prone, or if you have boisterous small children or regular guests.

Home insurance with accidental damage cover does tend to cost more though. It’s worth weighing up how much extra you could pay versus the likelihood of, say, your child accidentally knocking the TV over and smashing it, meaning you have to buy a new one.

It’s also worth factoring in how much excess you may have to pay to make a claim.

What counts as accidental damage?

The Financial Ombudsman defines accidental damage as something:

Unforeseen
Unintentional
That results in a loss of function (your item can’t perform the task it was designed to do).

For example, a blocked drain can be considered damaged even if there’s nothing visibly wrong with it. If it’s blocked, the drain can no longer do what it was designed for.

How much does accidental damage insurance cost?

The cost of accidental damage insurance can depend on several factors, including how much cover you want and the value of your belongings.

But according to our data, it costs £32.11^[1] more, on average, to add accidental damage cover to buildings insurance and up to £27.10^[1] to add to contents insurance.

If you’ve claimed on your home insurance before, insurance providers may see you as higher risk and charge you more for accidental damage cover.

^[1]51% of our customers were quoted £32.11 more to add accidental damage cover to their buildings insurance and £27.10 more to add accidental damage cover to their contents insurance between October and December 2024.

Does my home insurance include accidental damage?

Whether your home insurance includes accidental damage will depend on your policy.

Accidental damage insurance, whether for contents or buildings, is usually sold as an optional extra alongside standard home insurance policies. If you compare home insurance quotes with us, you can tell us if you want to include accidental damage cover as an add-on.

Cover levels and exclusions vary, so check to make sure you get the right level of cover for your needs.

Find out more about home insurance.

Based on 28,737 reviews, customers who bought Home insurance rated our comparison service 4.7 out of 5.

Makes an onerous task so much easier

Keith • 18/02/2025

Cheaper than existing insurance. Very happy customer.

Denise • 17/02/2025

Found a very competitive price for my home insurance

G Sehmi • 20/02/2025

Lots of options for my home insurance

Kim • 05/02/2025

What are the alternatives to accidental damage insurance?

Accidental damage insurance can be useful, particularly in a busy household where mishaps can be a regular occurrence. But you may find other options provide more tailored cover.

Home emergency cover

Home emergency cover can pay out for the cost of a call-out and urgent repairs if you have a home emergency – for example, a blocked toilet or an electrical fault that leaves you without power.

Gadget insurance

The cost of replacing gadgets like smartphones, smartwatches, laptops and games consoles can quickly add up. Specialist gadget insurance can offer more protection than you get with a basic home contents policy with accidental damage cover.

Accidental damage pet insurance

Most standard accidental damage policies won’t cover chewing, scratching, tearing or fouling caused by pets. You’ll usually need to look for a policy that gives you extended accidental damage cover. Some pet insurance policies cover accidental damage by pets.

What do I need to get a home insurance quote?

We’ll need some information about:

You and your property
How much cover you need
Any extras you want to add, including accidental damage insurance.

Once we have the details we need, we’ll show you a list of quotes to compare.

Start a quote

How to make an accidental damage claim

First things first, check whether your home insurance policy covers you for accidental damage. If it does, have a look at the terms to see if the damage may be covered.

If it is, you’ll need to gather evidence to support your claim. That could be, for example:

Photos of the damage
Receipts for any emergency repairs required – although, if possible, leave the damage as it is until you have spoken to your insurance provider
Receipts, valuations or any other evidence that explains what happened.

Get in touch with your insurance provider to start your claim. You’ll need your policy number handy. There’s often a helpline listed on your policy documents, or you may be able to start your claim online.

Your insurance provider can advise you on how the process works and how to pay the excess to get the ball rolling.

Is it worth making a claim for accidental damage?

Whether it’s worth making a claim on your home insurance for accidental damage depends on the cost of the damage and how much you’ll have to pay as an excess.

You’ll also need to consider how making a claim could raise your home insurance premium when it comes time to renew. And if you would lose any built up no claims discount.

For example, imagine you have contents insurance with accidental damage, and your TV is smashed in an accident. The excess on your policy is £100. If your TV only cost £150, then you may decide it’s not worth it. But if you had a more expensive TV then making a claim could be well worth the effort.

What our expert says...

“Some premier home insurance packages already include accidental damage cover as standard. It’s worth comparing these with standard policies with accidental damage as an added extra, to see which works out cheaper."

- Anna McEntee, Home, pet and travel insurance expert

To sum up

Accidental damage insurance can help cover the cost of repairing or replacing items damaged at home, where the damage was unforeseen, unintentional or resulting in a loss of function. It can cover different things depending on whether it’s added to buildings or contents insurance. But either way it won’t cover certain things like general wear and tear. To get a quote, simply provide some information about you and your property.

Frequently asked questions

If an item is broken, will I get a new one with accidental damage insurance?

If you have new for old contents insurance – which is fairly standard these days – you’ll receive a like-for-like, brand-new product or a pay-out to replace the item (once you’ve paid your home insurance excess).

An exception to the ‘new for old’ rule might be if you’ve damaged items like curtains, bedding or clothing. Here your claim could be reduced by a ‘wear and tear’ clause.

What about accidental damage insurance and matching sets?

Matching sets cover offers a pay-out for a complete set of items, like a three-piece suite, even if only one item is damaged and can’t be repaired or replaced.

If your policy doesn’t include matching sets cover, you may be able to add it for an extra fee.

Do I need accidental damage contents cover if I live in rented accommodation?

If you want to protect your belongings against accidental damage, consider getting accidental damage contents cover alongside your rental contents insurance.

Do I need accidental damage insurance for my buy-to-let property?

If you’re renting out a furnished property, adding accidental damage cover to your buy-to-let insurance can protect your belongings if they’re damaged.

Does accidental damage insurance cover damage by pets?

Many home insurance policies, even those with accidental damage cover, won’t cover damage caused by chewing, fouling, scratching or tearing by pets.

But accidental damage insurance might cover you for certain types of pet damage. For example, if your over-excited Labrador knocks over an expensive vase.

If you’re considering accidental damage insurance and are concerned about pet damage, read the small print so you know what’s covered.

Does accidental damage insurance cover damage caused by DIY?

Most accidental damage insurance policies won’t cover DIY that you’re not qualified to do – that’s to say, skilled work (like plumbing) that isn’t carried out by professionals.

But while a bad job isn’t usually covered, some DIY accidents might be. For example, if you accidentally hammer a nail through a pipe.

Does accidental damage insurance cover my belongings outside the home?

Accidental damage insurance won’t cover items you carry around with you when you’re not at home, like your phone, watch, jewellery and laptop. Instead, you’ll need to add personal possessions cover to your contents insurance.

What’s a home insurance wear and tear clause?

Insurance providers can sometimes reduce your payout on grounds of wear and tear. This tends to happen with items like clothing, bed linen or curtains.

Your provider may take into account the age of the item and reduce your settlement by a percentage. Your policy documents will explain this in more detail.