Low value home insurance

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bazzer

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#691069 25-Sep-2012 12:18

I've heard both stories, I'm not sure. My policy document mentions claiming to the maximum sum assured, so other than for a total loss this wouldn't be possible otherwise.

oxnsox

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#691108 25-Sep-2012 13:17

You can reduce your premium by opting for a higher excess.

But ensure your policy doesn't treat a claim for multiple items separately (ie: applying the excess to each item)

edge

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#691138 25-Sep-2012 13:46

linw: Correct me if I am wrong, but I think some bad calculations are being made here.

If you have $20K of stuff but only insure for $10K, the insurance co. won't pay you $10k if half of it gets nicked. They will pay you half of that to match your half cover.

That certainly applies to my house insurance cover, but I don't think to my contents (although would have to double check!). I am covered for full replacement on my house but did check at the time and the proportional approach does apply. i.e. if you only insure your house for 50% of its market value and it suffers "some" damage (lets say a tree falls on one corner of the house!), then the insurance company would only pay out for 50% of the cost of repair. That was the case with AMI when I last discussed it - but I would certainly not be bold enough to suggest that applies to everyone. Maybe, though, it is worth remembering and discussing when insuring.

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MikeSkyrme

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#691164 25-Sep-2012 14:20

We have just gone through this exercise and got quite a shock.

Go to your nearest insurance company, or check online, they have lists of household items that each type of policy covers and explain whether these are replacement value or not.

Once my wife and I had ticked off all of the items that we needed to replace in the event of a catastrophe, we found we were well underinsured.

Spend 30 mins going through the list would be my recommendation.

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ajobbins

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#691175 25-Sep-2012 14:38

Your premium is based more on the risk profile than the sum insured, and as such it often makes little difference to the premium.

I had contents insurance with State (Also with Tower before that). I upped my cover from $20k to $40k and it made about a $4 a month difference to the premium.

When you think about it, if you house burnt down and you had to re buy EVERYTHING, $20k wouldn't go very far, especially for two of you. Think about replacing all your clothes just as one example. Work clothes can be especially expensive. My work clothes alone would cost a few thousand to replace.

For what is often a couple of extra bucks a month, I would much rather be over insured than under insured.

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timmmay

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#691556 26-Sep-2012 10:01

$10K is tiny. Contents covers everything not permanently attached to the house, curtains, not sure about carpet, TV, clothes, shoes, computer, phone, sofa, appliances, etc. I calculated mine out at well over $100K.

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geek4me

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#691566 26-Sep-2012 10:22

Halving your cover does not mean your premium will also be half what it was. Increasing your excess is the best way to save money as you then share some of the risk.

Is there a website that compares cover amounts and premiums charged by the different companies? That would be helpful.

nate

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#691972 27-Sep-2012 00:18

timmmay: $10K is tiny. Contents covers everything not permanently attached to the house, curtains, not sure about carpet, TV, clothes, shoes, computer, phone, sofa, appliances, etc. I calculated mine out at well over $100K.

I don't own. I'm renting.

timmmay

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#691989 27-Sep-2012 07:34

Does renting mean you have no responsibility for the contents that aren't fixed? I have no idea, but you should ask.

You'd have to be super poor or frugal to have only $10K worth of stuff. It adds up very quickly.

freitasm

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#691997 27-Sep-2012 07:52

nate:
timmmay: $10K is tiny. Contents covers everything not permanently attached to the house, curtains, not sure about carpet, TV, clothes, shoes, computer, phone, sofa, appliances, etc. I calculated mine out at well over $100K.

I don't own. I'm renting.

Let's see:

Flat TV
Sound system
Bed
Sofa
His clothes
Her clothes
His shoes
Her shoes
Plates
Cups
Cutlery
Table
Chairs
Linen
Towels
Watches
Jewelery
Certificates
Telephones
Mobile phones
Tablets
Computers (if personal)
Digital camera
Lenses for digital camera
Heaters (if not fixed)
Books
Suitcases
Blender
Toaster
Pans/pots
Stuff I forgot

All this will cost a lot more than $10k to put back if it melts down in a fire...

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