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Getting Good Building Insurance

Article by Albie Steyn
























If you have just bought a property with buildings already on it or are intending on building fixed structures, you probably need to have building insurance. Building insurance is cover against damages caused by natural disasters or people. It covers only the structure of the building itself, not the contents of the building. For that, you need contents insurance. Let us stick to building insurance for now.

There are a number of different options when it comes to building insurance, each different type will cover you for different damages.

The first type of building insurance is loss and damage insurance. This type of insurance covers you against acts of God. That means you are covered against damage caused by natural disasters as well as damage caused by usual weather patterns, like lightning strikes or rain damage. It will generally cover your actual home as well as any other buildings on your property.

You can include standard accidental damage cover in your building insurance policy. This will cover you for damages caused to external fittings and add-ons to your home like solar panels and the glass in your windows. It can also be extended to include the piping and cabling that runs to your house.

For those of us who are lucky enough to own more than one home and rent out the additional properties, can invest in building insurance to protect the building but not the tenants belongings. What happens to the tenants possessions is not the responsibility of the landlord. However, tenants have a tendency to cause considerable damage to property and building insurance can cover the cost of repairs. One can also include legal and maintenance cover under this kind of insurance. In order for the tenant to be covered against theft and other eventualities, they have to take out their own insurance.

Then there is builders risk insurance, this kind of insurance covers the building against damages whilst it is still under construction. That way, should a particularly vicious storm cause damage to your building before it has been completed, you do not have to pay for the repairs out of your own pocket.

There are many other types of building insurance available, which you decide to opt for is dependant entirely on what you intend to do with the building you are insuring. Older houses which have historical value will never be insured for their true value as this is inestimable. Insurance for this kind of home will only cover the actual cash value of the house, not the replacement value. Building insurance for a commercial building varies according to what use the building is put. A shopping centre will need very different building cover than a warehouse, for example, will require.

The general idea is to ensure that you are able to rebuild you building in case of it being damaged by any cause whatsoever, within reason of course, without costing you, the owner, very much. The more risks your building faces, the more you will pay in insurance premiums and the higher your excess will be. As with most insurance policies, it is often possible to tailor the policy to your needs.

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An Englishman’s (Detached) Home (With Swimming Pool) Is His Castle

An Englishman’s (Detached) Home (With Swimming Pool) Is His Castle











UK (PRWEB UK) 16 May 2012

The UK’s dream home is a 3,800 sq ft detached house by the sea, with a swimming pool, according to research by home insurance provider, swiftcover.com.

The research discovered that although a detached home is ‘the dream’ property type for more than half (55 per cent) of UK homeowners, a cottage (15 per cent) and even a bungalow (13 per cent) made up the top three ‘most wanted’. Six per cent see their dream home as being a castle.

For almost half (46 per cent), the coast is the location of choice, followed by the countryside for one in four (26 per cent). Age certainly influenced the location of the perfect pad with the majority (51 per cent) of those aged over 54 wishing for a seaside location, whereas the youngsters (18 to 24 yr olds) saw their dream pad in a town or city centre (14 per cent) – more than any other age group.

Despite having a firm idea of what their perfect home would look like, less than half (41 per cent) expected to be able to afford it at some stage in their life; however, those determined to fulfil their goal believe that they’ll do so by the time they turn 44 years old. Just two per cent said they’d have it by the time they turned 30 years old.

James Barclay, home insurance underwriting manager at swiftcover.com said: “A detached house by the sea with four or five bedrooms is the UK’s perfect pad. Having goals and aspirations is wonderful but it’s such a shame that our property dreams are simply out of reach for the majority of us.”

swiftcover.com’s own desk research went on to reveal the cost of the UK’s dream home – analysing the data obtained from the above research i.e. a detached, four bedroom house with a private swimming pool, alongside the price of existing houses matching this description currently on the property market – to be in the region of £1.5m.

Accompanying the research, calculations revealed that with a down payment of a third on the £1.5m perfect house, the mortgage equates to £9,376.67 a month (1) over 11 years – assuming the person was a first time buyer at 30 years old and acquires their perfect home at 44 years old. This would require a household income of £23,441.68 a month, or £281,300 a year (2) – £140,650 each person, considering a couple would be likely to be paying the bill.

Brits’ perfect pads weren’t confined to a particular size, location or type but these perfect pads contained a few ‘must have’ entertainment rooms. A swimming pool was the biggest splash with almost half (43 per cent) citing one as a must have for their dream home. A cinema room (30 per cent) and games room (27 per cent) was also high on the list for many. Those with virtual billions demanded riding stables (eight per cent) and a golf course (three per cent) to accompany their four bed detached house by the sea.

James Barclay continued, “Whether it’s a £1.5m dream home or a slightly more realistically priced property, movinghouse is always a huge decision and probably the most money you will ever spend. A house is an enormous investment and requires some serious thought but taking care of it once you own it is also vitally important. Budgeting for adequate home insurance cover is extremely important.”

Home insurance is a vital part of all homeowners needs. Not only is buildings insurance a necessity when moving house, the larger a house is the more likely it is to need regular upkeep and care.

Furthermore, you should also check that your contents in your home are adequately insured and that your valuables limits within your home insurance policy are sufficient.

Until mid June, swiftcover.com home insurance is offering Home Assistance at 50 per cent discount. Home Assistance provides cover in the event of an emergency in the home, such as blocked drains, burst pipes and broken boilers.

In addition to this, customers can also get up to 25 per cent discount when buildings and contents insurance are bought together.

For more information visit http://www.swiftcover.com/homeinsurance . For a full copy of the research, please see the contact details below.

Ends

Notes to Editors

Based on a survey of 1,621 UK adults carried out by Opinion Matters.

(1)    Mortgage calculated over 11 years assuming a third equity at 4% interest. Calculated using John Charcol’s online calculators.

(2)    Assuming a mortgage should make up no more than 40% of a households income

Swiftcover home discounts includes:

(1)    Swiftcover is offering Home Assistance for half price (50% off) when it is added to a home insurance policy. The offer applies to new policies only and is valid for the first year of cover. The offer ends on the 19th June 2012.

(2)    Customers can get up to 25% discount when buildings and contents insurance are purchased together. 80% of customers who purchased a combinedbuildings and contents insurance policy between Aug-Oct 2011 achieved this discount. The discount is applied to the annual premium when buildings and contents insurance are purchased at the same time.

For press enquiries please contact:

Luke O’Mahony or Sean Williams

Brazil (PR agency for swiftcover.com)

020 7785 7383 (07931 718 429)

swiftcover (at) agencybrazil (dot) com

About swiftcover.com:

Based in Cobham, Surrey and employing more than 1,000 people, swiftcover.com started trading in June 2005 and wasborn out of a desire to revolutionise the general insurance market by making insurance quick and easy to use.

swiftcover.com offers car, home, travel and pet insurance online, and is the only insurance provider in Britain not to use call centres, which provides cost savings that can be passed directly onto the customer, keeping premiums low. swiftcover.com was named Best Value for Money Car Insurer in the UK in the 2010 Lovemoney.com awards.

This powerful operating model combined with successful marketing and competitive pricing has proven to be a tremendous success. In 2008 swiftcover.com achieved over half a million live policies and in May 2009 sold its millionth policy. swiftcover.com isconsidered to be one of the fastest-growing online insurance providers in the UK and, as of February 2011, has more than 800,000 policy holders.

In 2007, AXA UK acquired swiftcover.com. It is now a wholly owned subsidiary of AXA Insurance UK plc which forms part of AXA Group.

About AXA:

AXA UK is a part of the AXA Group. The AXA Group is a worldwide leader in insurance andasset management serving 101 million clients. It is ranked the largest insurer in the world by net written premium and the top insurance brand globally.

In the UK AXA operates through a number of business units including: AXA Wealth; AXA Commercial Lines, AXA Personal Lines, AXA PPP healthcare, AXA Ireland and an independent distribution business Bluefin. AXA employs over 13,000 staff in the UK.

For full year 2011, IFRS revenues amounted to Euro 86.1 billion and IFRS underlying earnings to Euro 3.9 billion. AXA had Euro 1,079 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2011.

The AXA ordinary share is listed on compartment A of Euronext Paris under the ticker symbol CS (ISIN FR0000120628 – Bloomberg: CS FP – Reuters: AXAF.PA). AXA’s American Depositary Share is also quoted on the OTC QX platform under the ticker symbol AXAHY.

The AXA Group is included in the main international SRI indexes, such as Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and FTSE4GOOD.























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Home Insurance; Building Insurance is a Necessity

Article by David Patullo









Building insurance is what covers your home, land, permanent property fixtures, and other buildings on your property. It is required by banks in order to finance your home and is crucial in protecting your most valuable asset, your home. Most policies will cover things like fences or gates, bathtubs, sinks, and permanent fitted kitchens as well.

Since Building insurance is required by banks, many lenders will include it in the mortgage payment itself. Remember you always have the option to shop around and are not obligated to accept the combined mortgage-insurance payment. This, however, could prove to be a money saving option. That is not always the case, though, and you are encouraged to compare policies to get the most competitive price. Building near a fire hydrant can also reduce your building insurance. If the city code requires a fire hydrant near your building, having it installed before the building begins will be a money saver.

What Am I Covered from?

Policy coverage will be based on the company you choose to insure through, and the accuracy of the information you give them regarding risk factors. Be sure to have a professional come to your property to conduct a survey; a surveyor will make you aware of any potential risks you did not know of, and allow you to get the most accurate coverage. The types of damages usually covered in building insurance policies are; Fire, Flood, Earthquakes, Storms, Vandalism, Riots, falling objects related to aircraft, falling trees, Sinkholes(subsidence), and, if made aware of, frost damage to your plumbing. Remember to declare all potential risks to your insurance company; this way you will be covered from those types of damages. If a particular risk can be corrected, you may find eliminating the risk will reduce your insurance rate.

Not This One…

Unfortunately, building insurance will not cover all types of damage. The personal belongings within your home are the most notable. This list, however, includes damages from war, terrorism, pollution, pressure waves, and radioactive contamination.

Payment!

Do not forget to factor in your deductible, or excess, when comparing prices for building insurance. This is the amount you have to pay before the policy kicks in and covers expenses. Normally, if the deduction is higher, the monthly insurance rate will be lower. With a low deductible, the monthly insurance rate will be higher.

Extras

Policy add-ons come with an extra fee, but can protect against certain types of expenses. These add-ons include public liability protection and alternative accommodation. Public liability protection covers you in a situation where you would be personally financially responsible for someone else’s medical bills, or court fees. I.E. a dog bites someone in your yard and they sue you. Alternative accommodation pays for you to live in a different structure (RV, mobile home) while you do home renovations or repairs. You can also look into content insurance. Having content insurance will provide coverage for most things that are in the building.



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