Although not mandated by law, it is critical that every homeowner gets home insurance. Home insurance protects your property and belongings in different ways, depending on the insurance provider you choose. When shopping around for home insurance, it is important to know exactly what will be covered in your insurance policy. There are three types of home insurance, with each option offering its own perks.
Buildings Insurance
Building insurance is a subset of home insurance that covers damage to a property’s structure. This insurance plan covers damage to the walls, roof, and windows, plus damage to the toilets, baths, kitchens, and other integral fixtures and fittings.
In most cases, building insurance will cover the cost of rebuilding the house from the ground up if the damage is too extensive. The cost of doing this might be higher than the value of your home and can include the cost of:
- Site clearance
- Demolition
- Architects fees
Types of Loss Covered by Buildings Insurance
Building insurance will usually cover damage caused by fire, floods, smoke, storms, explosions, natural disasters, fallen trees, aerials, lampposts or satellite dishes, malicious damage, vandalism, and vehicle or aircraft collisions.
In some cases, your insurance provider will also cover damage to other structures such as the driveways, outside walls, and garages. Because this is outside the realm of most of what is covered by most insurance plans, you might have to choose a different, more expensive insurance plan.
Note that buildings insurance is usually essential if the property is mortgaged.
Contents Insurance
Contents insurance covers the cost of replacing your home’s contents and belongings. The circumstances covered include theft, accidental damage, or other damage. Most insurance providers define the contents of your home as anything you would take with you if you ever decided to move.
The items covered under contents insurance include furniture, electronics, kitchen items, appliances, clothes, ornaments, jewellery, antiques, and much more.
Contents insurance is often bought as part of a combined home insurance policy.
Combined Buildings and Contents Insurance
Although it is never explicitly mentioned, combined buildings and contents insurance is what most people buy when they get home insurance. It is simply a combination of the buildings and contents insurance options. Its main advantage is that it is cheaper than getting two separate insurance policies.
Always Shop Around for Insurance
It does not make any financial sense to go with the first home insurance provider you find. They may be expensive or not offer everything you need, especially if you need combined buildings and contents insurance. This is why it is important to find insurance providers whose plans are within your budget and who cover all your needs. For this, you need to get a list of quotes first before proceeding further. An easy way to do this is to use Quotezone – this is a popular comparison website that will allow you to compare different top insurance providers to see which one is the right fit. On their website, you can get a list of quotes plus see what all these different insurance providers have to offer, so you can choose the best one.
Everyone should get home insurance. It will save your property in case something happens. For the best result, opt for combined buildings and contents insurance policy.