First time getting home insurance, in need of advice

icicat

We've lived in a flat for 10 years and will be moving into a house we purchased.

I know nothing about home insurance, though what is the average cost for a house around 580k?

Also are there any essential add-ons anyone recommends or just the basics?

The house is at high risk from surface flooding according the the gov website, even though it hasn't flooded there in 60 years, Though would this be something covered by basic insurance? Or is there an additional option I need to request? The questionnaire didn't ask about flooding, so would I need to raise it with the insurer to determine if they will still insure the property?

Any advice would be great. Thanks

Mark_d

It should be straightforward for you to get a buildings & contents quote for you house.  If you use a comparison site you can get multiple quotes at one so you can see what the prices are like.

I would consider legal cover an essential.  Personal possessions is useful to because that can cover your mobile phone handset when away from home, and the belongings you take with you when you travel.  I prefer to self-insure rather than paying for accidental damage cover.  Home emergency cover is worth thinking about, dependent on what cover is provided by your boiler breakdown cover.

The insurance should know about surface water flooding risks based on your address/postcode.  Check the policy wording/document to see what cover is provided in the event of a flood.  If you need clarification on anything then give the insurance company a call.

I'm with NFU Mutual.  I bought the policy over the phone.  I was able to clarify things throughout the application, to ensure that they had all details complete and accurate.

DullGreyGuy

icicat said:

We've lived in a flat for 10 years and will be moving into a house we purchased.

I know nothing about home insurance, though what is the average cost for a house around 580k?

Also are there any essential add-ons anyone recommends or just the basics?

The house is at high risk from surface flooding according the the gov website, even though it hasn't flooded there in 60 years, Though would this be something covered by basic insurance? Or is there an additional option I need to request? The questionnaire didn't ask about flooding, so would I need to raise it with the insurer to determine if they will still insure the property?

Any advice would be great. Thanks

Buildings insurance is either based on rebuild costs as supplied by you or the number of rooms with a blanket limit, the market value of a property is irrelevant. 

Flood will be covered under Buildings and Content as standard, if its a high risk area expect higher premiums as a consequence. This has partially been offset by the government setting up Flood Re as a not for profit reinsurer of home insurance however its currently only set to run until 2039 after which prices may spike if its not renewed. 

You dont have to raise anything with an insurer they dont ask about but you need to make sure you have properly read the questions along with the assumption they ask you to confirm is true. It would be unusual for there to be no questions or assumptions on flood. Many people make mistakes by just clicking "I agree" without reading what they are agreeing to. 

Accidental damage may be an optional extra or as standard, certainly the most sensible optional extra to consider. Home Emergency does what it says on the tin but only deals with the emergency not a long term solution. If you know good electrician, plumber etc they may well be quicker and better than the insurance provided persons. LE cover is ok, I'd more consider it as a legal advice line than actually making claims but it can help in certain areas like non-car injuries, employment disputes, neighbour disputes and consumer matters. 

There are things like Trace & Access and Matching Set insurance that aren't optional extras but are features of better quality policies and rarely on budget policies. If you have a big kitchen, the whole house in matching flooring, multiple rooms fully tiled etc as well as matching sofas etc and want to ensure they remain all matching then getting matching set can be a good idea.

icicat

Thanks guys, some really good advice to take in. I couldn't read anything about flooding, though my quote was unusually higher than a friends quote, which could be automatically calculated based on the flood risk, though will ring up one of the insurers to find out about that. Yeah it was more the additional stuff I was not sure about. It may be good to pay some of the ones mentioned as it's not too much extra for a year.