Article by Jon McGovern
Most people want to compare home contents insurance to be sure that they’re getting the best deal possible. The key to making the most of your home insurance comparisons is to not only compare the price but the policy features too.To start with, like most forms of insurance, home contents insurance will normally carry an excess. The excess is a financial amount that you would be expected to pay in the event of a claim and it’s sometimes called the ‘first part’. So to compare home contents insurance policies you may need to start by examining the respective excesses. In general terms, the higher the excess then the lower the price of the policy (usually known as the premium) – providing all other things are equal. Taking the comparison to the next stage requires some thought as to what the different policies include.Typically a home contents policy will, as the name suggests, cover the contents of the home. This usually includes furniture and fittings, personal belongings such as clothes and ornaments, and most forms of jewellery and electronic equipment. With some policies, individual high value items such as rare antiques, very precious jewellery and high value electronic items may need to be declared separately. Insuring these items may involve additional costs. The policy may also cover items of furniture and equipment such as garden furniture and tools stored outside or in external sheds. It may also be possible to insure under this type of policy for the loss or damage of personal property when in use at other locations – a good example of this may be the loss of expensive spectacles at the office.As with all insurance, many home contents insurance policies could come with exclusions and conditions. When comparing between policies, these are also factors that may help a decision.As an example, not all policies necessarily offer new-for-old cover. In other words, if for example, a five-year-old television is destroyed in an accident, the policy may not replace it with a brand new, current model. Some policies may have value limits for individual items. Others may exclude certain types of items or goods such as cash or commercial goods for sale that were stored at the home. Items that are someone else’s property, such as an employer’s computer in use in the house, could also face exclusions. Something else that may require attention is the fact that not all policies view the security of the home in the same way. Some companies may insist that specialist locks and alarms are fitted to doors and windows before some categories of cover are be available. Others may charge additional amounts for properties situated in certain areas seen to be ‘high risk’ in terms of burglary etc. There are home insurance comparison websites that can help you make the selection process easier by allowing you to not only compare the premiums but some of the major policy benefits too. This means that you can choose the policy that best fits your requirements and budget.
About the Author
Jon McGovern is from Tescocompare.com, the insurance comparison site where you can compare car insurance policy features and prices.
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