NFU - so expensive?

Roselondon_2

Hi,

We are first time buyer for a mid terrace house on the edge of London.

We got quotes from different insurers for between £300-400 mostly. But we do want to find an insurer which has good reputation (relatively) when it comes to claim.

We found NFU but after contacting them directly, they quoted £1600/year! They said they can consider to bring it down to £1000. But still, even if they have good customer service, is this really the range of price they quote for a house others could insure only at £300-400/year?

Thanks.

InsideInsurance

You need to compare the cover provided.

Classic big differences are things like matched pairs/ sets. So you damage a door of a kitchen unit and you find out they dont make the kitchen any more......

A budget insurer wont have matching set cover so will pay you the value of 1 door and the fact you cant get a matching replacement is your problem, with a complaint you can a few months later get a 50% contribution to replacing all the doors (if you know how to complain).

With a good insurer they do have matching sets cover and so will replace all the doors in the kitchen for you.

Needless to say with one insurer paying £100 (or £1100 if complained well) and the other paying £2100 immediately there is no doubt why one is more expensive than the other.

In addition to matched pairs/ sets is also if accidental damage is included or not, if it is all risks or specified perils, what cover for outbuildings, if there is cover for tracing a leak, threshold for having to declare items, what cover for boundary wall/ fences, what cover for gardens, hole in one insurance etc

I cannot remember the exact details of the NFU policy but it is at the better end - hence why it also gets higher customer satisfaction ratings.

Hasbeen

Yes, As Above

We have been with NFU for a good few years, House and horses and although I can get cheaper it is a case of you get what you pay for.

They are more expensive than the bottom range, but we think it is worth it.

But you have to look at your own circumstances and decide what is best for you! especially if money is tight.

What is good this year may be perhaps not so good next year?

dacouch

NFU have good cover and offer good customer service, they always feature very high in customer satisfaction surveys.

Traditionally they've always been better on more rural clients, which is probably connected to their roots.

dunstonh

Just saying ditto to InsideInsurance.

So many providers price themselves for the bottom of the market and lop off features and coverage to allow them to do that. Others will price higher but leave the coverage and features in (to varying degrees). You do not buy NFU on price. You buy them because you want quality. Hiscox is another that is worth looking at if you value quality.

Roselondon_2

Thank you very much, everyone! It's really reassuring.

From all the comments I found online about insurance companies, NFU is the only one I haven't read a single piece of bad review.

We will see if they could really bring down the quote to anywhere near £1000. My husband is quite keen to insure with them already. But we still need to control the budget at a reasonable level...

Thanks, everyone!

InsideInsurance

http://www.defaqto.com/star-ratings/home-insurance?ProductTypeView=StarRatingsCenter_HomeInsurance_Contents_ProductDetails&Ratings=1,2,3,4,5&Products=&Product=&Search=&Sort=

The above gives a good idea of the better featured policies

*Scarlett

NFU also rated highly on the "Which" guide.

If you are considering others you can check how they fared here.

http://www.which.co.uk/money/insurance/reviews-ns/home-insurance/which-recommended-providers/

rs65

Roselondon wrote: »

We will see if they could really bring down the quote to anywhere near £1000. My husband is quite keen to insure with them already. But we still need to control the budget at a reasonable level...

So, you have quotes starting at £400 (ish) but are prepared to pay £1k. You are on the wrong forum - try moneyspendingexpert instead.

I never go for the cheapest but £600 is a huge difference. I would buy one at £500 (ish) and bank the other £500. That leaves a bit in case a claim occurs that isn't covered.

Roselondon_2

Apparently, John Lewis declined to quote and M&S as well, due to high risk of subsidence. But the fact is most of the buildings in that street/area are Victorian houses - more than 100 years old. Shall I therefore conclude the subsidence has never been a real problem in the specific area?

InsideInsurance

rs65 wrote: »

So, you have quotes starting at £400 (ish) but are prepared to pay £1k. You are on the wrong forum - try moneyspendingexpert instead.

I never go for the cheapest but £600 is a huge difference. I would buy one at £500 (ish) and bank the other £500. That leaves a bit in case a claim occurs that isn't covered.

As you somewhat hinting at there should be a consideration of value rather than just price.

Whilst £600 is a big difference it really does depend on if the added features you get are of that much value to the OP or not. There are certainly some people for whom things like matched pair cover and a £10k limit on single unspecified items can be of significant value