The value of everything we keep in our homes creeps up so gradually that we probably barely notice it. New towels for the bathroom, bed linen, clothes, furnishings, even food - they're all items most of us buy over the years. They may be kept at home, but when it comes to home insurance, how accurately does the total sum insured reflect such purchases?
All too often, you might find that the value of your home contents is inching up almost by stealth and the cost of their potential replacement (in the event of a fire, flooding or burglary, for example) remains effectively hidden.
In order to avoid the accumulation of such hidden values, you might wish to consider some of the following factors when arranging your contents insurance:
- The failsafe way of ensuring that you are adequately covered for all the contents, of course, is to conduct a careful room-by-room inventory of every item;
- Some policies offer to cover all of the contents up to a fixed, maximum amount. This might take some of the pain out of your needing to make a very detailed inventory, but it is important to make sure that the value of the whole contents of your home still falls within the limits insured;
- It is worth paying particular attention to the risks covered, since some of these might vary from policy to policy. The major risks, of course, are more or less standard, whatever the policy, and include the loss or damage of your home contents as the result of fire, earthquake, flooding, theft and vandalism;
- As an "all risks" option, it is also possible to insure contents against accidental damage and to cover articles which are normally kept at home, but which you take out with you from time to time (such as laptops and other electronic gadgets, bicycles or even the contents of your wallet or handbag). Once again, however, the list of items covered is likely to vary from insurer to insurer, so it pays dividends to read the policy documents carefully;
- Insurance tends to be about envisaging the worst case scenario. In this case, that means the possible loss or destruction of the whole contents (as the result of a major fire, for example), following which you need to replace every item. That is one reason why it is important to ensure that the total sum insured is enough to do the job. An equally important reason, however, is that even in the event of a relatively minor claim - say for the replacement of just one or two items - the offered settlement takes into account the total sum insured and represents a proportion of it. Under-insurance, therefore, is something to be avoided in practically any situation;
- Typically, most contents insurance policies offer settlement of claims on a genuine replacement basis, at today's prices, whatever their cost when they were originally bought. Cheaper insurance policies are also sometimes available, however, which offer compensation for lost, stolen or damaged items on a "wear and tear" basis - settlement is made after the deduction of a sum representing the depreciation in value of such articles.
Home contents insurance policies typically cover not only the basics, but also a wide variety of standard or optional items that vary from one insurer to another. Whatever the policy you choose, therefore, it is worthwhile checking that the risks covered match your particular needs and circumstances.
David Thomson is Chief Executive of BestDealInsurance a completely independent specialist broker dedicated to providing their clients with the best insurance deal. They offer the full range of home insurance to buy to let cover, ensuring that their clients have the protection they need, without leaving a hole in their pocket. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_H_Thomson Hidden Values - Contents Insurance |
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