Contents Insurance
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Contents Insurance
This covers all items in your house, which are not fixed to the property, for example your furniture, jewellery, appliances and clothing. The easiest way of thinking about what is buildings and what is contents insurance is to think of buying a newly built house. All the basics are included like the sink, toilet etc but things like the television and freezer etc are purchased separately. This is contents insurance. The cheapest form of contents insurance is often indemnity based. This means that in the event of a claim, the insurance company would settle on the basis of what the item was worth rather than replacing the item on a 'new for old' basis.
Impartial only recommends contents insurance companies that offer the 'new for old' option because the cost is often not that significantly different to an indemnity policy but the claim can be. Therefore, in the event of a claim you would receive a brand new replacement of whatever gets damaged or stolen, thus you would get a brand new television for example. There are one or two exceptions to this. A stained carpet being claimed under the optional extra accidental damage option. If the carpet can be cleaned rather than needing replacement then the insurance company would prefer to settle on this basis. This would often be more convenient to you than replacing it completely anyway. Contents insurance cover is similar to buildings insurance, but also includes theft.
Calculating the Cover
One of the biggest errors people make with contents insurance is under valuing the contents of the home. When you make a claim for loss or damage the first thing the insurance company will look at is whether you have covered the value of your contents correctly. If you haven't you may find that the insurer will consider that you are under insured and will only pay a proportion of the value of the damaged or lost items.
This can be avoided by spending a little time going into each room and making a list of all the possessions with an approximate value if purchased new. It is worth noting that if you have some free standing kitchen equipment rather than a fully fitted kitchen, this may be classed as contents insurance rather than buildings. Pay special attention to any high value items or works of art.
It's always a good idea to keep receipts or valuations where possible. Taking photos may also help in the event of a claim, as you may not have kept the receipts.
Contents Insurance Accidental Damage
Accidental damage cover is an optional extra with contents. This doesn't increase the price a great deal but can be very valuable cover if you need to claim.
Accidental damage covers you against damage caused by you or others that is deemed to be an accident.
For example, if you dropped and broke something, knocked something off the shelf or paint on the carpet.
Contents insurance accidental damage cover is very similar across all home insurance policies. 'An unintentional one-off incident that harms your property or its contents'.
There are some things that your accidental damage will not cover but these are few and far between.
General wear and tear is therefore not covered under the accidental damage option. You also won't be covered for items that break down. However, if the same item were damaged because you dropped it, you would almost certainly have a claim.
Many contents insurance providers will not cover for damage caused by animals/pets. They may also not cover your contents for damage caused by insects, vermin or infestation.
Contents Insurance No Claims Discount
This is a discount more linked to car insurance in the past. In recent years insurers have started been giving no claims discounts to building and contents insurance to encourage them not to claim no doubt. You normally qualify for No Claims Discount (NCD) if you did not claim on your home insurance the previous year.
Some insurers will give you a no claims discount if you a first time buyer and others may give you some other form of incentive to arrange your buildings and contents insurance with them. The maximum no claims years that will normally be allowed is 5. This can make a massive difference to your buildings and contents insurance annual premium.