Home insurance that doesn't over insure?

£&*£(£)*

I'm moving into a rented flat shortly, and want to get contents insurance.

What makes me angry with all the quotes online is that they are expensive, and overinsure. For example being insured for £15,000 or even £20,000 for contents -- and items away from home a minimum of £2000.

But I don't want that much, and feel they are overinsuring just to make more money. I wouldn't insure my £2k car for £20k, so why must I ensure my few grand of items for £15k? Outrageous.

Can anyone suggest any reasonable insurers?

Thanks!

jonesMUFCforever

Go and see a broker then instead of looking online.
However a lot of companies will have a minimum cover limit whether this applies in your case I don't know.

dunstonh

They dont over insure. They are blanket plans designed to insure upto a certain amount. They were designed to be sold by direct (and later online) distribution channels where its cheaper and easier to include things on bulk rather than spend a long time saying what you do and do not want. You can still get policies where you can select how much and what you do and dont want but typically not online. That said, the typical minimum nowadays is around £15k. Its not worth insurers offering much lower than that as the cost and profit ratios would not make it worthwhile.

dogbot

To extend what dunstonh says above, these products are becoming more common and actualy help the policyholder. It just means that you don't have to go around totting up exactly how much everything is worth and reduced the risk of under insurance and so disputes when the claim comes.

The insurer will have a method of predicting how much each policyholder actualy has based on their answers to other rating questions and producing a price based on their likely sums owned rather than the actual limit you are insured for.

I would say that if you sat down and worked out a true sum insured for yourself then you will be surprised how much it adds up to. It needs to include everything you own at full replacement value since the insurance is new for old (usualy with the exception of clothes and bedding). You also need to think about new purchases - buying a new TV or computer can produce a big jump in the value of your conents during the year, and if you buy a few DVD's books or CD's their value soon adds up. A contents policy will also usualy cover landlords fixtures and fittings, alternative accomodation and tenants liablity.

dacouch

Dogbot a contents normally excludes excludes cover for landlords fixtures and fittings (The Landlord normally Insures these). There are a few niche products eg contents policies for student that include cover for landlords fixtures and fittings (Providing the tenancy agreement makes you responsible for them).

OshayAway

In fact, blanket policies are also favored by insurers as it avoids the possible alternative, under insured issue. Not so long back there was alot of negative publicity about individuals greatly underestimating the cost of replacing their worldly goods on a new for old basis.

The resulting claims would only pay a proportion of the total sum insured for, even if not claiming for total loss of all items. ie someone chooses £10k cover when actually their contents would cost £20k to replace in total... if they claimed for £5k would only pay £2.5k as they were under insured by half.

Understandably, insurers don't like bad publicity because it hits them in the pocket. That's why they prefer higher default limits.

If you wan't to compare with a notional policy, speak to a broker but be sure not to underestimate your cover.

£&*£(£)*

Insurance is ultimately a risk, a gamble. A gamble on their part to give you the policy, and a gamble on mine if i don't take it.

But I believe in evaluating the real risk vs costs. I hope there is an insurer somehwere that's reasonable. And the fact that insuring under £15k is not of interest to them just sucks really, and hopefully some insurers will fill that gap. I want to limit their exposure to risk, and in return I want a smaller premium. Fair's fair. Particularly as using the car comparison again, if I insure my car for 3x the value they aren't going to pay 3x the value. Same goes for content insurance.