Home Content Insurance

Home contents insurance is the perfect supplement to homeowners’ insurance because most homeowners’ insurance policies do not cover your valuables. Home contents insurance covers various items such as clothes, accessories, shoes, DVDs, TVs, DVD players, music systems, iPods, mp3 players, gaming devices such as Play Station, X Box, Nintendo Wi, stamp, coin, medal and other collections, antiques, paintings, jewellery, watches, furs, luggage and sports equiment etc. Home contents insurance protects you against various risks including fire, lightening, storms, floods, theft, accidental damage and falling trees, branches, aerials and sattelites etc. The home contents insurance company will require you to disclose all (your) valuables along with an estimate of their prices.

Most insurers require receipts (or an independent valuation) if the price of one or more items covered under your home contents insurance policy exceed a certain amount. There are a large number of options available for (potential) buyers of home contents insurance. Thus it is important to ascertain your needs before purchasing a home contents insurance policy. Most home contents insurance policies contain certain exclusions. These among others include damage caused by negligence and pets, routine wear and tear and damage to covered items outside of home etc. Make sure you are aware of what is and is not covered under your home contents insurance policy. Ask your insurer to clarify all confusions before purchasing the home contents insurance policy. Following are some important considerations for buying a home contents insurance policy:

• Amount of Cover – Most policyholders either overestimate or underestimate the value of their valuables. Make sure you know the correct value of your possessions and are adequately covered. Many home contents insurance companies are now providing home contents insurance cover with an unlimited amount. However it will obviously be more expensive than a home contents insurance policy that provides a limited cover.
  
• Payment Schedule – Policyholders have the option of choosing from a range of flexible payment options ranging from monthly to yearly to half yearly premium payment. Choose the most suitable option for your distinct needs and pay your premiums on time to continue your home contents insurance policy.
  
• Best Alternative – Insurance companies usually offer (many) different options for home contents insurance. To make their offer more lucrative than others certain extras such as legal advice, free recovery service may be added. You should carefully analyze all available options and then decide which one is the most suitable for your distinct needs.

Home contents insurance should always be supplemented with flood insurance especially for people living in high flood risk areas. This is because your flood insurance policy covers damage to your home only and will not your valuables (inside your home).

Home contents insurance will ensure peace of mind even when you are away from home for long periods. Home contents insurance also suits the needs of renters who do not require homeowners’ insurance but need to cover their valuables. Most home contents insurance companies offer an extended policy called accidental home contents insurance. Accidental home contents insurance covers your valuables even in your absence. However accidental home contents insurance is usually not available for tenants. Another type of home contents insurance is new-for-old. New-for-old home contents insurance replaces your valuables if they are damaged and can not be repaired or are stolen. Keep in mind that new-for-old home contents insurance will be more expensive than conventional home contents insurance policies. As with other types of insurance policies experts recommend shopping around before buying a home contents insurance policy.