Home insurance questions

MaryNB

FataVerde said:

Brie said:

re the contents - take a virtual walk through the house and tot up everything in that room that might need to be replaced if a fire gutted the whole building.  rugs, paintings, sofa, TV in the lounge, bed, dressers, bed side tables, bed linen and all your clothes, jewellery in the bedroom, oven, hob, fridge, microwave, kettle, dishes, glassware, cooking pots and utensils and cutlery in the kitchen....  Don't forget the stuff in the garage, shed but check to see if they will actually be covered.

fyi - when we were burgled a number of years back I thought there wasn't really all that much taken and not much to claim.  After all other than a bit of cash there was a couple of watches and some relatively inexpensive jewelry.  Once we did the mental walk through the jewelry box we realised that and the rest totaled £5k.  i.e if a pair of silver earrings cost £20 and there's 30 pairs then that's £600, add grandma's opals etc etc etc

What I don't get is how do you prove that's what you had in the house when it burnt or was burgled? I won't have photos with myself wearing all those things or even receipts fpr most of them. Now that I know, I'll keep everything for appliances and furniture, but the clothing, jewelry, etc. is much harder to document.

You should take photos now of any items you do own, especially any expensive items. If any items are of a particularly high value you may have to specify them on the insurance, otherwise they'll be subject to a standard limit which may be well below the value. 

Slithery

FataVerde said:
It is mid-terrace in London. The market value is 37K...

Whereabouts in London is this?

FataVerde

Slithery said:

FataVerde said:
It is mid-terrace in London. The market value is 37K...

Whereabouts in London is this?

E17 closer to Epping forrest

Slithery

For £37k?
I don't believe you...

FataVerde

Slithery said:

For £37k?
I don't believe you...

Sorry, 375k. Miswrote that. Yeah, I wish This being said, it's weird that the other flat in the house sold for 170K in 2013 and the one I'm buying sold for 200k more just 2 years later in 2015. It's larger and has a loft demised to it and half the garden so more value, but 200K difference? Insane.

canaldumidi

FataVerde said:

1.     Cost of rebuild: Should I use the cost in my Hombuyer’s report (lower) or that automatically suggested by the comparison site (higher by about 60,000)?

2.     Contents insurance: do you estimate the cost of new replacement items or the ones you currently own?

3.     Can I add the contents insurance later? I currently have almost nothing in appliances and furniture. 

4.     Once you find the right policy, how long does it take to instate it for the property? I understand it has to be in place on contracts exchange day.

1) Your Homebuyer's report should include a 'Rebuild' cost, based on a qualified surveyor who has inspected the property. It may also include a 'Valuation' (ie market value) which is very different.

'Rebuild' cost is the cost to knock down a burned out house, clear the site, protect neighboring buildings, and build a new house from scratch.

'Valuation' is what it is worth to buy the house (and land) as it currently is.

In expensive areas, rebuild value is typically cheaper than market valuation (but not always).

In inexpensive areas, rebuild cost may well be higher.

Comparison sites make 'guesses'.

The RICS website also has a calculator here.

But many insurers nowadays don't need an exact rebuild cost. They'll cover any rebuild costs up to, say, £500,000. Or for bigger houses up to, say, £1m.

Put in a rough figure if using a comparison site and then select an insurer who uses this 'blanket cover' method (appropriate to the type of property).

2. Total cost of buying new possessions to replace the ones you own and which might get stolen, burned etc

3. Yes. There's real convenience value in the long term of buying/renewing buildings and contents cover together, and the saving by delaying for a few months is minimal. Though if you're not going toneed contents cover for, say, 6+ months then maybe buy it later.

4. Shop around in advance and get quotes. Choose your preferred policy. Then on the day you Exchange you can go online/phone and activate the policy based on the quote, instantly.

FataVerde

Btw, I will have to rewire one of the circuits, do some other electrical work, reclaim the floorboards and eventually get a new kitchen. Is any of this likely to invalidate an insurance policy? 'Renovations' is listed as a possible cause of invalidating the  insurance policy online. Or does this just depend on the insurer? Currently the leaders on my quotes are AVIVA and Privilege Home insurance.

MovingForwards

For your first year you can always look at DL 
https://www.directline.com/home-cover
They do an up to amount for buildings and contents, saves you worrying about being correctly covered while kitting your home out.

The second year, you've gained loads of knowledge and use comparison sites.

FataVerde

MovingForwards said:

For your first year you can always look at DL 
https://www.directline.com/home-cover
They do an up to amount for buildings and contents, saves you worrying about being correctly covered while kitting your home out.

The second year, you've gained loads of knowledge and use comparison sites.

Something like this AVIVA quote, isn't it? Even with me inputting specific sums, the two best options seem to have this high ceiling. 

user1977

FataVerde said:

Slithery said:

For £37k?
I don't believe you...

Sorry, 375k. Miswrote that. Yeah, I wish This being said, it's weird that the other flat in the house sold for 170K in 2013 and the one I'm buying sold for 200k more just 2 years later in 2015. It's larger and has a loft demised to it and half the garden so more value, but 200K difference? Insane.

So you're buying a flat, not the whole house? Are you sure it's up to you to arrange buildings insurance? Generally (in England & Wales) the freeholder organises the buildings insurance for the whole building and splits the costs among the leaseholders. If you're also going to be the freeholder, it probably isn't a standard buildings policy you want.