Insurance for my first home, and contents for me and my flatmates

Forums › Home Workshop DIY › Insurance for my first home, and contents for me and my flatmates

Willuknight

146 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 19

Trusted

#191060 21-Jan-2016 20:03

Just about to buy a house, I've been quoted $1000yr for the house insurance and $500 extra for contents insurance up to $50,000.

I was wanting to kinda do this as a flat thing, so if the place burns down we all get $12k each towards our stuff, or if we get robbed we can just claim on the stuff that was stolen

q1) Does home and contents cover all the contents in my house? or just the stuff I can personally prove I own? Would it also cover my flatmates / friends / families stuff?

q2) If not, is there a good package / provider that does provide this?

q3) What sort of insurance do you use and what are your thoughts on it?

Thanks!

antoniosk

2382 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 742

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1476406 21-Jan-2016 20:28

1. Read the terms and conditions of the policy

2. Talk to other insurance companies and read the terms and conditions of the policy. State Insurance does offer this sort of thing from memory.

3. Exactly what you have. But read the terms of the policy and pay attention to landscaping and things NOT in your house. For example, if you're on a hill and have extensive landscaping and fences, your policy is likely to have a low cap. How much would it cost to repair all that if it fell apart?

Do not underestimate the cost of repairing a house - if it burns down and needs rebuilding, you need to clear and prepare a site - and that can easily consume $50k of your total rebuild.

The cordell calculator is a guide only and does not replace common sense. If you have a 1920's house with rimu doors and joinery, it's not the same as a 1990's built cheap with hollow doors and gib board. And so on. If your house is old and looks nice, it will cost a LOT more to repair and replace than a standard modern house.

________

Antoniosk

Willuknight

146 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 19

Trusted

#1476413 21-Jan-2016 21:00

I used their calculator and according to that the rebuild cost would be $400,000. The improvements according to the council are only rated at $200,000 but it was only $20 more a year to over insure to $508,000 rebuild, so I went with that.

I suspect the terms and conditions would preclude what I want to do which is why I don't want to ask them, but I'm also just keen to see what solutions other people have gone with.

Aredwood

3885 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1749

#1476469 22-Jan-2016 00:48

Ignore council value of improvements. It is just the difference between land value and total value. If you have a large section you will have a high land value but small improvements value. My house once had a 15k improvements value yet total value was over 300k.

lxsw20

3689 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 2174

Subscriber

#1476470 22-Jan-2016 01:51

I'm not sure why you would be interested in covering your tenants goods, that's up to them to arrange. Say for example you tell them they are covered, then they have 10k worth of camera gear taken, which isn't covered by your policy. You've sort of just taken ownership of that problem, not worth the hassle.

Make sure you tell your insurance company you plan on having tenants. I think it cost me a little more, but it wasn't significant, possibly the excess was another $500 or something.

Willuknight

146 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 19

Trusted

#1476698 22-Jan-2016 11:57

Because I like my tenants / they are friends?

Because it's far cheaper to have one policy then to all have individual policies

wellygary

8810 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 5287

#1476703 22-Jan-2016 12:06

Willuknight:

Because I like my tenants / they are friends?

Because it's far cheaper to have one policy then to all have individual policies

Yes, but it gives them much less protection,

A contents policy will tpically cover your and your families goods, not those of other people whoe are in the house, call an insurance company and talk to them and tell them what you want to do, you will find it is much more expensive than the answer spat back from a website.

Also contents cover gives your flatmates public liability insurance,

(if for example one of your mates is cooking on the BBQ or making chips on the stove and for whatever reason they start a fire and damage your house, your house insurance will fix it or pay you out, but they will then start to recover those funds from anyone they think is liable, ( your mates), if only you have the insurance, they are not covered and could be facing a big bill, if they have individual contents insurance, they get liability insurance as part of the deal)

Mighty Ape

Shop now at Mighty Ape (affiliate link).

lxsw20

3689 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 2174

Subscriber

#1476737 22-Jan-2016 12:14

Willuknight:

Because I like my tenants / they are friends?

Because it's far cheaper to have one policy then to all have individual policies

Just because they are a friend doesn't mean you should take on their risk, honestly you're asking for issues, and as above they need to liability cover if they do damage the house.