Insure your home and its contents
Home and contents insurance is important to have if you have anything of value (look around your home - even if you rent - you'll be surprised at how much you actually own like furniture, electronic gadgets, clothes and jewellery). Ask yourself how you would replace it if necessary. Unless you are absolutely minted or really own nothing of value, you will need to get all the contents in your home insured. And the chances are, you own more than you think. The contents of the average home in the UK are thought to be worth more than £40,000. Phew! Most homes are under-insured, which means that most people would be left out of pocket if you had a fire or burglary. How to choose There are various different kinds of contents insurance policies and some cover more than others. Basically, though, they cover the loss, damage or theft of any of the contents of your home while they are in your home. Some insurance policies have extras like covering your possessions when you're travelling, which can save on your travel insurance. Generally, though, the more bells and whistles you have, the more the insurance will cost so you have the weight-up what is most important to you in your cover. The amount you have to pay each year also depends on what your living circumstances are. The more secure and safe your home is, the lower the premiums are likely to be. There are several things you can do now to bring down the cost of home contents insurance. Bestbuys - Get free contents cover when you take outbuildings insurance with More Than plus a 25% discount when you buy online.
- Tesco often has special voucher codes and discounts with their insurance policies, so it's a good idea to check them out.
- Check our home insurance comparison table to see whether another provider can beat Tesco's prices.
- With Nationwide you get 20% off when you buy buildings and contents cover together and 20% off your renewal price next year PLUS a further 10% off when you buy online. Check the website for further details.
Making savings To get the lower premiums you should make sure that you do the following: - Have locks recommended by police and security experts. The more lock-friendly your house is, the more secure it appears and the lower the premium you will pay. All locks should conform to the British security standards BS3621 (that means they can only be opened by a key).
- Have burglar alarms where necessary. These reduce the risk of getting burgled while also keeping your premiums lower.
- Fit anti-crime devices. Do all you can to make things difficult for burglars. If you live on the ground floor, grow hedges and prickly shrubbery outside the windows. Fences, gates and doors, should be properly maintained. Bars on windows are also essential for most basement and ground-floor flats, particularly in cities.
- Try to pay for the insurance once a year rather than in monthly instalments if you can manage it. Some insurers charge interest on the instalments, which makes the whole thing more expensive.
- Most home contents insurance policies have a section that you can fill in that insures individual items separately. They can even be insured when they are out of the house. So, for example, if you have some bits of expensive jewellery that you wear regularly, or even prescription glasses, you should insure them individually so that if you lose them in the street you can get the money back.
- Shop around – of course. There are loads of different policies around and just going with one that your bank is offering is a waste of your time and money. Look here for the best deals on contents insurance. Fill in your details and study the different policies that are suggested. If all other things are equal, go for the cheapest.
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