Moving House - Contents Insurance Overlap

steeeb

Hi.

I am currently in rented accomodation until 20th Jan but we are completing on buying a house hopefully today (touch wood).

I rang my insurance company (Post Office) who I have home insurance with and told them the situation and that I require building insurance in order to get the mortgage.

My original plan was to somehow have contents insurance for both properties and move stuff in over Christmas whilst we are off, and 'properly move' some time after the New Year.

The Post Office tell me you can't physically live at two properties and they cannot overlap the insurance so the created a new policy for buildings insurance and I need to move over contents insurance when I actually move.

Surely though I'm not the first person ever to want to move in over a period greater than a day and would want contents insurance for both properties for a short period? What do people with two properties do if they say you cannot physically live at both at the same time so can only insure one?

It all seems a bit backwards? Are the Post Office just being crap, or am I not normal by wanting to do this and should rush around in a single day because that's "the norm"?

Thanks very much.

G_M

Standard.

Most contents insurance policies will cover the contents at house A only, in transit with removals firm, and then at house B only.

If they covered you for both properties simultaneously they would be covering a far greater risk (twice the chance of a burglary!).

So either transfer the policy over at the point where most of your expensive contents are moved physically (and keep your fingers crossed about the less valuable, uninsured contents), or take out a short (1 month?) policy to cover the overlap, or just start a new policy before ending the old one and accept an overlap.

steeeb

G_M wrote: »

Standard.

Most contents insurance policies will cover the contents at house A only, in transit with removals firm, and then at house B only.

If they covered you for both properties simultaneously they would be covering a far greater risk (twice the chance of a burglary!).

So either transfer the policy over at the point where most of your expensive contents are moved physically (and keep your fingers crossed about the less valuable, uninsured contents), or take out a short (1 month?) policy to cover the overlap, or just start a new policy before ending the old one and accept an overlap.

Thanks for the reply.

Yeah, thats what I mean, I told them I want an overlap but they ensured me that they can only cover 1 property at a time.

In an ideal world I'd take out both buildings insurance and contents insurance on the new house and cancel my old home insurance when I move out. But they didn't say I could do this.

I think I'm best ringing them again and hopefully get on to someone more helpful this time

steeeb

Just rang them up again and they thought it was very strange that I wasn't moving in over a single day, and that it would be impossible to cover both properties.

Surely I'm not the first person to want to own more than one property and to move contents across over a period of a week and not do everything on one day?

jennifernil

My daughter has just bought a house, gets the keys tomorrow. We have arranged a new buildings and contents policy for her, as required for the mortgage, but she is not actually moving entirely until January 3rd. Her current contents only policy expires January 4th.

The new house is brand new, so first has to have flooring installed, amongst a stack of other jobs, so impossible to move her in on the day.

As it happened, her current insurers were also least expensive for the new policy. When I rang to organise it they first said I should contact "renewals", but once I had explained the situation and that she needed both policies meantime, they said this was fine and that they understood that moving house took time.

She does own her current place too, but the buildings insurance is for the whole block, so a different company. As she is to be renting out that flat, that policy will of course continue.

My son and his wife also had an overlap when they moved, about 10 days I think, as they wanted to redecorate and replace some carpets, they had no problem either. No idea however whether they stayed with the same insurer.

steeeb

jennifernil wrote: »

My daughter has just bought a house, gets the keys tomorrow. We have arranged a new buildings and contents policy for her, as required for the mortgage, but she is not actually moving entirely until January 3rd. Her current contents only policy expires January 4th.

The new house is brand new, so first has to have flooring installed, amongst a stack of other jobs, so impossible to move her in on the day.

As it happened, her current insurers were also least expensive for the new policy. When I rang to organise it they first said I should contact "renewals", but once I had explained the situation and that she needed both policies meantime, they said this was fine and that they understood that moving house took time.

What was the insurance company out of interest? I'll give them a ring and see if they'll cover contents on my new property and then cancel the old one once we move out.

tim123456789

steeeb wrote: »

Just rang them up again and they thought it was very strange that I wasn't moving in over a single day, and that it would be impossible to cover both properties.

Surely I'm not the first person to want to own more than one property and to move contents across over a period of a week and not do everything on one day?

Then you need a new insurance company

Whilst not (perhaps) the majority position it is going to be far from unusual (I do it myself, evey time)

(Sorry, I know that my rant didn't actually solve your problem)

tim