Reducing premiums on your house and contents insurance.
Home insurance, also known as Household Insurance is a policy designed
to cover your home and if applicable its contents against the possible
risks. With most aspects of household insurance, the premium is based
upon factors over which you have no control. The location of the property,
its age, the value of its contents are all fixed and there is little that
you can do about it. order to finance a car.
There are three factors,
however, that can make a large difference to the insurance premium
and that you can affect directly. The three factors are: the amount
of the voluntary excess, the security features of your home and
your claims history.
Listed below is a breakdown of the three factors:
Voluntary Excess
If you make a claim the insurer will expect you to pay the first
part of the claimed amount, this is known as the Excess. Because
the insurer insists that this is paid for each and every claim it
is known as the compulsory Excess.
Most insurers are happy to provide a discount on the insurance premium
if you are prepared to pay a larger part of any claim in other words,
accept a larger Excess. Because this decision is up to you it is
known as the voluntary Excess. The amount of any discount will vary
between insurers but is generally in the region of 5% to 15% depending
upon how much you are prepared to accept. |
|
Security
All insurers want to reduce the number of theft claims and one of the
most effective ways of achieving this is for you to ensure that your home
is properly secure. Because security is so effective at reducing theft
most insurers are prepared to reward you with a reduction in premium.
The insurer will define the type of security that they require in order
to qualify for a discount but for most companies there are three particular
security measures which count; good quality locks on windows and doors,
a professionally fitted and maintained burglar alarm and membership of
an approved Neighbourhood watch scheme.
Unfortunately, some householders are already in a high risk area, for
example many city centres, and the insurers may insist that certain securities
are in place before offering cover. In these cases, of course, no security
discount will be applicable.
Claims discount
Just as with Motor Insurance it is now common practice for insurers to
reward those who have not made a claim in preceding years. The level of
discount varies from one insurer to another however 5% to 20% is now common
and the amount is increasing.
To ensure you are getting the best possible Home Insurance deal, shop
around, evaluate and compare all the appropriate policies that provide
the cover you require. Think about policies in terms of price, coverage,
excess, flexibility and the reputation of the insurer.
|
|
