Protecting Your Home

Buildings Insurance

Buildings insurance protects against damage to the actual structure of your home, primarily the roof, walls, floors, ceilings and foundations. For example, if your house is destroyed, or rendered uninhabitable, you can claim the cost to rebuild or carry out the necessary repairs.

In addition, you may also be able to claim the cost of alternative accommodation while the rebuilding work is undertaken, as well as any legal costs arising from damage to your home. Buildings insurance may also include outbuildings such as sheds or garages.

Importantly, you should always ensure that there is proper insurance in place from the moment you become responsible for the premises, even if this is before moving in, which is usually when you exchange contracts on a purchase transaction.

Typically, buildings insurance covers:

  1. Subsidence of the foundations of your home
  2. Damage by falling objects such as trees, aerials, aircraft parts
  3. Collision damage, e.g. if someone drives into your home
  4. Burst pipes, tanks and floods
  5. Damage caused during a civil riot
  6. All of the fittings, that are not readily removable i.e. Kitchens and Bathrooms

Mortgage Providers have made it a condition that Buildings Insurance is in place when a property is purchased or refinanced.

How much buildings insurance do I need?

The level of insurance you arrange should be enough to cover the cost of rebuilding of the property.  Policies are generally index linked and premiums are increased in line with these indices. Over a period of time the rebuilding cost may become distorted and it may be beneficial to have the policy reviewed.

Contents Insurance

Our advice to clients is often to take out separate policies for buildings and contents insurance. In the event of a claim being made on one of the policies the no claims benefit is affected less detrimentally.  Contents Insurance covers damage to household goods and contents and replacement of stolen goods in the event of a burglary.

Accidental Damage

Accidents do happen. Spilling red wine on a carpet, knocking over a TV, dropping a hammer on a tiled floor. Without this extra level of cover none of these circumstances could lead to a claim.

For more information on Buildings and Contents Insurance
please call us on 020 8441 2605 or 01442 232 272.

Alternatively, for our enquiry form,