Best Extra Student Insurance?

Penny-Pincher!!

Hello

DD needs extra cover as she has quite a lot of expensive gear for her course. The basic contents won't cover anywhere what she needs. She has an Imac, Macbook Pro, Iphone, printer and quite a lot of other stuff. She will be living in a kind of halls where there will only be 4 including her where they all have their own room with shower and share the large kitchen.

She will be based in Central London. Everything is key card activated, so she only has access to her room and areas where obviously she can go. It has 24hr CCTV, concierge through the day, and no one can get in unless they have a card etc. Its quite a tight student housing building, but she's also on the ground floor, so am a bit worried about that. Just her iMac, Macbook Pro and Iphone comes in over £3500.

Does anyone know where we could get extra insurance and at a good price please? I've heard of Endsleigh.....is that any good?

Thanks guys.

PP
xx

bouncydog1

We spoke to our home insurers and extended our policy to cover all DD's Uni possessions. That way we also had cover for when she travelled home and on holiday etc.

They were able to take the view that she normally resided with us. Not sure if this might be an option for you. Would add that we don't have a budget type policy though so not sure if this is normally available.

devildog

Endsleigh are the ones that the Uni tends to use as part of the rental agreement for students in Halls (included in the rent price) but will only cover contents in the room.
As already mentioned, some home insurers will either cover students and their possessions away at Uni (check your policy schedule) or will include this for an extra cost (when I looked into this they wanted somewhere in the region of an extra £70) I guess what you have to also weigh up is if there is a loss and you go down this route you will lose any no claims discount.

There are insurance companies like, I think it is called 'protect your bubble' that will insure the such like as mobile homes/laptops when taken out of residence and SIS insurance is another that springs to mind.

After weighing up the options further(after paying for extra insurance for the eldest for their first year) we haven't bothered since

Penny-Pincher!!

Thanks for the replies! Protect your bubble seems to be a rip off and have to insure each item. I am with the AA, so will contact them and ask about extending to DD's accommodation or her main possessions. Endsleigh will do a basic package for £9.99 pcm, but her iMac is worth way over the £750 max they will pay out!

Lets see what the AA says and I don't mind an extra £70. Maybe she'd be allowed extra locks on her door and window?

PP
xx

bouncydog1

Make sure you remind her to always keep her door locked as theft cover will be by forcible and violent entry/exit. If one of her flat mates wanders in and nicks her macbook she won't be covered if the door hasn't been forced.

Also tell her to always check her door on leaving her room as sometimes with the key cards the doors don't quite lock. When that happens hope for worst case scenario of room decorated in loo roll and not all possessions stolen!

Further word of caution on moving in day - never leave the room unattended and assume all youngsters are students moving in. At DD's Uni one poor lad nipped out of his room to get another box a nd someone nipped in and stole his laptop. Apparently the local thieves mingle with all the freshers and helpers and seize opportunities to steal.

Penny-Pincher!!

Thanks Bouncy!

We're dropping her off and I'll be in the room whilst they unpack as I'm disabled in a chair. Will be taking a tin of Celebrations and some bottles of Breezer drink things....whatever they're called now...lol. I'm 38 and we used to drink the old TNT....you remember that? Thought it might make the transition a little easier s they'll be 4 in total including DD in the flat share.

CoolHotCold

Either the parents home insurance will do the job or the bank (I know RBS does a half decent policy).

Also, don't worry about transitional period, I moved into student halls and had a similar setup, in a block of flats (full of students) owned by the uni and everyone had their own rooms with locks on, (shared with 4 other guys) and the first thing that I noticed when I moved in was the fridge was plugged in and full of Tennants (two cases worth), one of the guys had came and checked out the place and left to go back home before I had moved it.

But yea, everyone's in the same boat, they don't know each other and being forced to live together means there's very little transitional period.

If it's booze you want to take, WKD or Peach Snaps or lambrini always goes down well. (Lambrini seemed the drink of choice for our groups female friends). Also, as a side note (from experience) take as much toilet paper as possible and tell your DD never to use bleach to cleanup sick from a carpet (YaY for drunk strangers abusing the flat during parties).

In your DD's first year she will be bombarded with all sorts of experiences and I have to say, being a first year student was so much fun I'd do it all again, good friends, easy uni work, living alone. It was never a boring day, from playing games in a bathtub (someone found a bathtub and dragged it back to the flat to plonk in the living room) to decorating our traffic cone Christmas tree to just hanging out with all the new friends and people you meet. An experience and a half.

bouncydog1

Penny-Pincher!! wrote: »

Thanks Bouncy!

We're dropping her off and I'll be in the room whilst they unpack as I'm disabled in a chair. Will be taking a tin of Celebrations and some bottles of Breezer drink things....whatever they're called now...lol. I'm 38 and we used to drink the old TNT....you remember that? Thought it might make the transition a little easier s they'll be 4 in total including DD in the flat share.

Don't recall TNT but then I'm a bt more than 38! Your daughter will have a great time - when our own DD was homesick ( only child and we live overseas) we always told her everyone fel the same. A few weeks and she's never looked back.

silvercar

I used cover4students, gave better cover at a cheaper price and you can customise it for your expensive items.

saving-mad

Thanks for this thread, dropped DS off on wednesday, we are still trying to find suitable cover for him, we are with AA and they don't cover halls of residence.
our total contents for home is £56 a year with them, i begrudge eastleigh's £8.99 a month when the cover is only £750 for laptop, phone, ipod, ds its more like £1300.

silvercar

A friend just suggested american express gadget insurance. For £10 a month it should cover all gadgets. Worth checking out.