Home Insurance Discussion

FlameCloud

I wouldn't overly trust Defaqto ratings- they are exceptionally easy to manipulate whilst still restricting cover.

HomeInsurance-insider

The main thing about defaqto is they restrict how the insurance company operates. The company I work for dropped out of Defaqto as they were telling us what to offer. You also have to pay for a defaqto assessment, so like most 'awards' in financial services the actual worth of a defaqto rating is a bit of a grey area!
I work in insurance, selling a quite highly rated (and therefore highly expensive) policy, and a lot of the coverages are not worth that much. Its important to consider the likelihood of actually claiming, and remember that the consultants are penalised for not selling enough 'add-on' coverages. Some, such as matching of items cover and personal belongings are really useful (and particularly cheap, but not worth much to the consultant), while others such as extended accidental damage and home emergency are expensive and unlikely to be used. For instance, if you spill wine on the sofa, you could get it professionally cleaned for maybe £200. If your excess is £150, and you have 5 years no claims which you will lose, it will end up costing you money in the long run and they make a profit (again!). Legal expenses is again £20+ per year that could be saved. Remember, you think you need these coverages because the insurance companies tell you that you do, and the insurance companies tell you that you do because thats where they make their money. Think about what you are actually going to claim on before you make the call, and stick to your guns. Dont be afraid to ask questions, there are some of us out there in insurance-land who do genuinely want to help!
Oh, and one other thing. If you phone the freephone number to get transferred, please try to go to a different department to sales. We are the only department where the consultants lose money through 'non-quotable' calls, and I personally took 30 transfer calls yesterday! We bank workers dont all get millions on our bonuses!

HomeInsurance-insider

Sorry, should have said, any advice or jargon translation anyone needs on home insurance, drop me a line 'cos I'm fully trained (and yes, that did involve reading the policy booklet!)

wrights

Has anyone had dealings re overseas holiday home insurance with Intasure?

dacouch

Yes, they are not to bad.

If you have a claim they tend to use a semi retired ex Pat Loss Adjuster who lives in the country your holiday home is and the policies are in English which can make things easier than using a local company (There can be major differences in cover between a local policy and a UK policy)

Jaybeeeng_2

Hi. I have a property which is diffficult to insure and am getting nowhere with the normal comparison websites - gocompare etc. It is a listed buiding, over 400 years old, in flood risk area, no alarm or high security locks etc. Any ideas on how to get a competitive quote?

dacouch

Try speaking to a local broker (A proper broker eg not Swinton) in the area the house is situated.

Normally Aviva are good on these types of property in flood areas.

Do you have a lot of contents and / or pay a big premium?

supermonkey

ok, i think i just need to vent really. last years policy was £100 with £70 quidco. This year, everytime I've gone through Martin's system and gone through check each quote in turn and found something that makes the price shoot up etc and none of the big cashback payers give a decent price. I have been doing this for a week now and really just feeling like not bothering at all now.

KeithK_2

If you're looking to save money on your homeowner's insurance, try installing a Wireless Security System with ADT Security. My wife and I did it, and it saved us 20% every year off of our homeowner's premium. It's definitely worth the look!

dacouch

Which Insurer gave you a 20% discount for installing an alarm?