Times are tough and learning how to shop around for home insurance is a skill that everyone should learn. In this article, we discuss how to get the right cover and the cheapest price for what you require. Making sure your insurance quote offers value for money and not just a cheap price is super important too. Keep reading to learn how to do this.
Shopping around for home insurance: how to get the right cover
How can I reduce my home insurance quote premium?
How to shop for home insurance when you have paying guests
What is a common mistake with home insurance?
Why are home insurance quotes so different?
Why would you be refused home insurance?
Do home insurers check if you’ve had home insurance cancelled?
Shopping around for home insurance: how to get the right cover
Before getting quotes, you should understand what type of cover you need. In our ‘What does home insurance cover?’ article, we discuss this topic at length in case you’re unsure. Assuming you already know what type of insurance you require, let’s discuss our top tips for making sure you shop around for the right home insurance cover:
Don’t just let your existing policy auto renew
If you just do nothing and let your policy auto renew, you may not be fully covered in the event of a claim if your details aren’t accurate. You may also be paying for cover you don’t need. Home insurance renewals are typically issued 28 days beforehand. Your insurer may have updated their policy wording and your situation may be different to the previous year. Always make sure that you review your details thoroughly for accuracy. This also gives you the chance to tweak your cover options and serves as a focal point to compare against other insurers so that you’re confident that you’re comparing like for like cover.
Write down a list of essential cover items you require
Now that you’ve made a note of the cover you’ve got with your existing insurer, make sure it provides everything you require and make a note of this. Some websites may not allow you to add certain optional add-ons until later, so check off each cover item as you go when getting a quote.
Make a note of existing policy endorsements
Policy endorsements are written provisions added by your insurer that can expand or restrict cover. If you’ve spoken to your insurer in the past about something that has resulted in an endorsement (e.g. cover restrictions if you’re listing your property on Airbnb) make sure any new potential insurers are happy with this.
Pay careful attention to policy documents
An insurer may say that they cover an issue, but it’s what they cover that’s most important. Every insurer places limits on what they do and don’t cover. Make sure you’re also getting enough cover as well. If you have specific items that are high value, make a note of the insurer’s single article limit and whether they’re willing to cover any items with a value that exceeds this.
Know your rights
Your insurer has a duty to provide cover that meets your demands and needs as well as treating you fairly. It’s not always possible for an insurer to give you all the information about your cover, but be sure you check through your policy documents to make sure you’re happy with everything. If you’re not, you have a legal right to cancel within 14 days of receiving these documents. Consumers also have a right to take complaints to the Financial Ombudsman if they’re unhappy with a complaint, provided that the insurer is regulated by the FCA.
How can I reduce my home insurance quote premium?
Now that you’re confident that you know what cover you require, we’ll walk you through the steps to shopping for a cheaper home insurance quote.
- Don’t over do it: Put down an accurate rebuild cost for your home. Don’t overstate the value of your contents. Doing so may raise your premium.
- Prioritise value for money: Not taking out optional add-ons will lower your insurance premium. This will also give you less cover that could cost you if you need to make a claim. Likewise, one insurer may be cheaper than the other but cover less or have more exclusions. Value your quote in proportion to the cover you’re getting.
- Get multiple quotes: Use comparison websites as well as insurers not listed on there. If you require specialist cover, an expert broker should be able to compare deals for the type of cover you need.
- Lump sum payments are cheaper: Paying everything upfront is usually cheaper than paying in monthly instalments. If cash flow is an issue, monthly instalments may be easier for some people, however.
- You don’t always have to wait until renewal: If your insurer’s mid-term cancellation fees aren’t too expensive, switching insurance before renewal may be worth it too. This may be especially true if the insurer you’re switching to offers additional incentives such as multi-policy discounts.
- Speak to your insurer if modifying your house: If you’re extensively re-configuring your house, make sure that it’s being done with materials that insurers are happy with. Non-standard materials may push the price of your insurance up dramatically when shopping around for quotes.
- Tweak your excess: Consider adding a voluntary excess to bring down the cost of your premium. Please note that you’ll have to pay this figure if making a future claim.
How to shop for home insurance when you have paying guests
The cover provided by standard household insurers for guest-related claims varies quite a lot. Unfortunately, most of them don’t provide full cover for these issues. Unlike shopping for standard home insurance, you’ll have to modify your approach slightly to get the best home insurance deal:
- What does your insurer exclude? Common policy endorsements placed on policies include restrictions on issues such as theft by a guest and malicious damage. Make sure to check if these are included.
- Has your insurer asked the question? Your insurer may not have asked if you’re an Airbnb host or property sharer, but that doesn’t mean you’re covered. It’s really important that you raise this with any insurer so that they can confirm what they cover.
- Don’t just rely on the platforms to cover you. Whilst platforms like Airbnb do provide some protection, this won’t be comparable to dedicated insurance cover. Alternatives such as Booking.com don’t provide any protection guarantees at all.
- Check if your insurer is comfortable with you getting additional cover. If the cover provided by your insurer isn’t enough, you may want to consider additional host insurance cover. It’s really important to check that your existing insurer is comfortable with doing this however. If they’re not, they may cancel your policy.
- Go to a specialist insurer: At Pikl, we specialise in Airbnb insurance and holiday let insurance cover for hosts. Consider getting your home insurance cover with a provider that specialises in this. Not only can you be confident that you’ll get comprehensive protection, you can also compare prices with different providers.
What is a common mistake with home insurance?
Some typical mistakes that policyholders make when getting quotes include:
- Being careless or untruthful. Always be honest and accurate with the info you provide. Not doing this could result in unnecessarily high costs if you overinflate the value. Purposefully withholding or misrepresenting could result in claims not being paid or your policy voided.
- Not paying attention to the excess. No one anticipates that they’ll need to make a claim, but when they do they’ll have to contend with paying the policy excess. As this can vary depending on what you’re claiming for, a much higher than expected excess could sting and lead to a bad claims experience.
- Not getting important conversations in writing. If something is important to you and requires you speaking to your insurer, make sure that you ask for confirmation of this in writing. Not only will this give you peace of mind, you’ll have a record of the conversation in case something goes wrong. Not having a record of this could complicate issues should you end up having a dispute with the insurer on the same issue in the future.
Why are home insurance quotes so different?
Each insurer is different and sets their pricing based on the ideal customer they want to attract. This will also be reflected in the type of cover they provide too. When a claim is made, insurers have to source building contractors to conduct repair work, with each contractor setting their own price for services. If these prices increase, the insurer will have to raise their prices too. Other factors that can influence premiums include the number of claims made and any changes to your circumstances that may influence the price. Home insurance is also a very competitive market, meaning that there are lots of factors that influence the many variations in cover and price you’ll see when shopping around for quotes.
Why would you be refused home insurance?
Insurers can refuse to offer cover for many reasons, including:
- Previous convictions, especially ones related to fraud.
- Having a policy previously voided by an insurer due to misrepresentation.
- Your home is considered very high risk, such as being located in a flood prone area.
If you’re struggling to get home insurance due to this very issue, speaking to a specialist insurer may help, although you may end up having to pay higher premiums.
Do home insurers check if you’ve had home insurance cancelled?
Home insurers typically ask this question when consumers get a quote. Alternatively, it may be included in their list of assumptions, which you’ll have to agree to in order to see a premium. Insurers can and do share information. Even if they don’t check at the point of sale, if it comes to light that you’ve not disclosed something at the point of claim, this may cause issues. Whether this affects the payout of any claim or the status of your policy depends on the reason for you having a previous home insurance policy cancelled.
Pikl is a highly experienced UK based team with a passion for customer service and insurance. If you have any guest-related home insurance queries, please get in touch and a member from our friendly contact centre will be happy to help you.
