Home insurance

The great thing about home insurance is that it isn’t rocket science – in fact it’s all rather straightforward. There are two types – buildings and contents – both of which are pretty self-explanatory. If you have a mortgage, you have to have buildings insurance. If you are renting a property, then that is the responsibility of your landlord.

Contents insurance isn’t compulsory, but ask anyone who has suffered a fire or a burglary and had their valuable possessions replaced through their home insurance policy, and you’ll see how essential it can be. It’s also important that you get the right amount of cover.

If you’re thinking of taking out home insurance, then you need to check exactly what is and what isn’t covered. Here are some specific questions you might want to ask.

• What is the single-item limit? At Direct Line it is £1,500 – any valuables over that amount need to be specified.
• Do you get additional cover as standard? With Direct Line, certain accidental damage, replacement doors and locks if your keys are stolen, and contents in the garden worth up to £1,000 are automatically covered.
• Can you get a discount for having extra security measures?
• What is excluded from cover? You need to check this very carefully.
• So can you add on extras as well? Direct Line offers additional accidental damage cover as well as cover for personal possessions outside of the home and up to £100,000 legal costs for a number of private legal problems.
• Does the policy offer ‘new-for-old’ on contents? Direct Line does.

Direct Line has an easy-to-understand summary of home insurance cover that is straightforward and jargon-free. And you can get a home insurance quote in a matter of minutes.