A Guide to Buildings and Contents Insurance
Buildings and contents insurance is a necessity if you want to be sure you are adequately protected should you lose your home or belongings due to theft or damage. There are cases all over the country of people who have had to pay for costly claims themselves or lose their property altogether due to not having sufficient insurance in place to indemnify a claim.
If had a fire in your kitchen for example, it is possible that the damage could run into thousands of pounds and you may need to replace items including your electric cooker.
By having the proper cover in place it would mean that you would be covered and the insurance company would pay to have all of it repaired and replaced with only your excess being charged.
What is buildings insurance?
Buildings insurance covers the main structure of your property and any outbuildings that you may have. It is legally required that you have buildings insurance in place if you have a mortgage as if anything should happen to your home and you did not have cover in place to repair and fix the damage then the mortgage company would be left with a possibly worthless house. Buildings cover also extends to include any fixtures and fittings that perform a part of the structure; this would include bathroom fixtures and fittings such as the basin and toilet and kitchen fittings and fixed appliances, such as electric cookers. Some policies extend to include cover for accidental damage as well though you have to pay a higher premium for this type of insurance. The insurance you take out for the buildings should be of an adequate sum to fully replace the house in the worst case scenario of a total claim. If you do not claim for a year then you earn a no claims bonus which slowly increases over time and can save you money.
What is contents insurance?
It is not a legal requirement that anybody hold contents insurance, however most people who are homeowners or tenants tend to take out contents cover for the protection it provides. Contents insurance would not cover an electric cooker as that would be already covered under the buildings element of your insurance. It covers all of your other possessions up to a maximum sum stated in the policy from loss or damage and theft. Contents insurance can be extremely worthwhile as if any of us were unfortunate to suffer a loss, through fire or flood for example, where the loss of our personal contents was extensive then it would cover you and you would be able to replace your items.