45%+ hike in building & contents premium !

Chinkle

We've just had a renewal quote from our insurers and as the title says its a big increase on last year.

Is this reflective of a more cautious insurance market, or more about our personal circumstances? We recently made a small claim for burglary and in the past had to have some remedial done work to prevent subsidence (but that was 3 years ago).

I'm going to call the company and see what they say, but wanted to get a general impression first.

Btw I've tried comparison sites, but only two insurers were willing to quote and they both quote at three times my current insurer.

benjaminM

The mere mention of the word subsidence has underwriters scurrying into the distance! This may pose a challenge for you if you want to change companies. That said there are some insurers are offering to beat any renewal premium at the moment and it might be worth chancing your luck with them. I know Direct Line and Towergate are both actively looking for new household business. Worth a try and depending on the severity of your subsidence issue you could get a decent quote.

dunstonh

Not all premiums are going up by large amounts. Some are actually going down.

There isnt enough info here to say but if you want a generalisation, then it does appear that higher risk individuals are seeing larger increases where lower risk individuals are seeing little or no increase.

A burglary would put you at high risk. You would also lose any no claims discount. The contents side is typically more expensive than the buildings side.

Chinkle

Yes, I know subsidence is a dirty word, which is why we have stuck with the same insurers for the last four years, rather than shopping around.

The contents element has actually reduced in price a little despite the burglary, but the buildings side shot up by more than double last year's quote.