Urgent Emergency Breakdown Insurance Information for Renewals

isayoldchap

I've had my renewal from Homeserve.This is important.........
Plumbing Plus(unlimited call outs up to £5k per job)-£74.99 pa
Electrical Breakdown £49.99 pa
Expensive you may say and you could be right.But hang on............

You see what British Gas offer....not bad.(The £53.50 cashback from www.quidco.com may appeal to some for a full
Homecare400)
Then there's Domestic &General ,comes in at £96 direct debit.

Solution...phone up Homeserve on the Customer care line only 0800783951
and tell them that you want to stay with them but D&G are doing it for £96.

I did just that ,and this morning a very nice lady ,in that department,reduced my next years cover to just £90.Must be direct debit though.

Most importantly, ask to be put on the Plumbing PLUS.FANTASTIC COVER AND UNLIMITED CALL OUTS.The standard only gives you 4 call outs pa.
Also remeber that the Electrical is Unlimited call outs.

So there you have it.Haggle them they want your business.

Lastly,I know that some members are constantly saying these policies are a waste of money.Problem is if you go down the savings route you may become a victim of a rogue trader or be lumbered with a large bill.

There are also very basic policies out there.Some are given on house insurance renewals but beware,basic may also mean low amount of cover/call outs.More in Martin's discussion on this.

If your not sure what to buy someone for a present,especially a parent who could become the next victim of a rogue trader consider these policies as a
good way of sorting out any worries that could occur throughout the year.
Great for your son or daughter who may want to set up their new house.

New members buying may not be offered a cracking deal as existing members
but you can ask for Plumbing Plus I have been advised today.Plumbing Plus is a tool they use to offer members to stay.

isayoldchap

Just got the policy documents this morning.All for £90 pa.Brilliant.

Anyone got this great deal yet?Don't forget to ask for it at renewal.

mortgageme_2

I use homecall+ for mine coming in cheaper

isayoldchap

mortgageme wrote: »

I use homecall+ for mine coming in cheaper

mortgageme http://www.homecallplus.co.uk/cost.htm

Isn't there minimum £8.95 per month.(around £108pa)See that does include central heating

I guess it's whether £500 will be enough for some emergency call outs.Do they also do unlimited call outs?

sam1970

I have been with BG for few years now on level 400 cover (£25/month) but reading your posts made me wonder if i could do better....any advice please

isayoldchap

sam1970 wrote: »

I have been with BG for few years now on level 400 cover (£25/month) but reading your posts made me wonder if i could do better....any advice please

Sam
The British Gas Homecare 400 cover is convienient in so much as you get all your eggs in one basket.But the cover limit are not as good if something major was to go wrong with your drainage.I have already written to the Head of Marketing who writes those letters to their customers,asking why the exterior drainage can't be increased further than the £1,000 mark per call out
She feels that the technology around today should mean a cheaper cost.
Considering that BG owns Dyno-Rod now maybe that's what she means.
So I guess you maybe happy to pay over that amount if they were to dig down,rip out and repair and make good to the tune of £1,500?

If you are happy then,I would recommend that new customers visit www.quidco.com as on offer is £53.50 cashback if you sign up to the Homecare 400.The problem is as an existing customer I don't think you will receive it.
If you do phone ring them on 0116 2502000 and not the 0845 number they show.More here www.saynoto0870.com
Clear your cookies if you go through Quidco though.Otherwise your cashback may not track.

I have got the Homecare 200 but I have read on here that British Gas have
put the price up for renewals(mine is due in January).I think I may switch then.Currently I pay about £14.16 pm.They have also just offered me the 300 option for an extra £9.25 pm.Forget it I said.

Personally I wouldn't go for all my eggs in the same basket.Bear in mind that
you will be joining as a new customer if you switch to another company.
Homeserve won't offer you the £90 deal I received as I am an existing customer and they don't want to loose me.But you can ask for Plumbing Plus.
My other post will explain this further.

Martin also has some good tips in his section on this type of insurance.Personally the no insurance savings route is not for me.Everyone will have their own choice.It costs me around £275 pa to have this house covered.Money I am happy to spend to keep away the cowboys.In anycase
I get a proper gas boiler and system check for that also.

You may want to consider the Homecall Plus suggested by mortgageme.I
would seriously look at all the options available.
Are the call outs unlimited?Some you are restricted to a few pa.
How much cover do they offer per call out?Or per year?Or both.
Check they will arrive within two or so hours.This is very important as the policy offered by Swinton is not very clear on this and I think they are trying to say next day.However they do offer £750.So a slight improvement.
I am swaying towards Domestic & General.Don't ring them on the 0870 number though-use 0115 9106500 ask switchboard for the quote section. (see more on www.saynoto0870.com )
I will however challenge Homeserve for a cheaper quote on my Gas Breakdown policy including the valuable service and safety check on the boiler.A must for every home.

I hate it when people,especially pensioners,get ripped off by rogue traders.These policies can help if something goes wrong at home.It's great to know that it takes just one call and usually within the same day it's fixed.
Read all the small print and hopefully you select a policy that will be adequate for your needs.The last thing you want is having to settle the remainder of the bill because your insurance company only covers you to a certain amount.Is that peace of mind?

I'll say it again.......If you're not sure what to get Mum & Dad,or a Wedding Gift,or something for a loved one or a friend get them a Breakdown policy.
They apply and you pay for it.Simple Peace of Mind.

Hope this helps someone.

paulus

Looks like Homeserve are considering taking over D&G, so there could be less competition!

http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2568032.ece