Building and contents insurance excess

doolallygal

Hi,
My building and contents insurance is up for renewal and I have got a cheaper quote with a different company, however the excesses are slightly higher.
I was just wondering what excesses you folks think is sensible - given bigger excess = cheaper quote!

My new quote is £135 for the year and the excesses are as follows:
£650 buildings excess and
£350 contents excess.

Should I forgoe a cheaper quote to bring down the excess in case the worst does happen?

Thank you all you lovely folks...:)

TSx

It depends... for instance, if a quote with a £50 excess is only £10 more expensive, then it would take 30 years without a claim to make up the difference and it's probably worth paying the extra. If it's £50 more, it would take 6 years without a claim to have made a saving... (assuming we're in a perfect world where the premiums stay the same)

But ultimately, the main question should be if (for example) you had a water leak, could you afford to pay the £650 excess on demand?

Also, make sure the provider doesn't charge the excess on both sections - most will just charge the higher excess than applies - eg contents £350, buildings £650, both £650 but some (AA for example) charge it on both sections, so if you claimed on both you'd be hit with a £1000 excess. Also check any increased escape of water excesses - AA (again, for example) also charge an excess of £250 on each section on an escape of water claim so what seems like a good deal doesn't turn out to be so great when they turn round asking for a £1500 excess from you

dacouch

I agree with TSx, the amount of discount you will be receiving for such large excesses on such a small premium will be very low, I would not be surprised if you are only receiving about £25 a year discount. Do the maths as per TSx's example.

Also bear in mind that quite a few Insurers add the excesses together for a claim that encompasses buildings and contents eg a water damage claim or break in so you could be paying an excess of £1000

*Scarlett

The excess that you are prepared to accept on a policy depends on your attitude to risk.

If you are someone who never claims and only wants insurance for the peace of mind for a major fire, flood, etc a higher excess might be ok.

As stated above, many insurers charge an excess on each element of the policy ie if you had a claim that involved buildings and contents you would be liable for both excess.

If you are opting for a particularly high excess, I would probably go for a standard cover and forgo extra accidental damage cover as spillages to carpets etc would probably be less than the excess.

Although the price you have been quoted for your cover seems good, the excesses do seem high (but that's just my personal view as to what I could afford or want to pay myself in the event of a claim). Have you tried other quotes with a lower excess?

In any case, it's something that you would just have to weigh the risk on. I know that no one knows when they will have to make a claim but you can maybe judge on your past claims history as to how often you have claimed, how much for and if the saving that you would make on the insurance premium would outweigh the excess on the cheaper policy.

Hope this helps