house and home insurance

[tezestwing]

I have got so many quotes all with different clauses limitations excces etc any recomendations on what to look out for or companies to use thanks for any replies Tez

[Ethel]

Make a list of what is important to you.
Some people have very expensive garden furniture and sheds full of expensive equipment. They need insurance that covers that, but you may not.

Do you need freezer insurance for the little box in your fridge?
Or pushbike insurance?
Add up the replacement cost of everything - do it room by room. Tedious but worthwhile. There is no point having �75k contents insurance for �35k worth of contents. Similarly it is a folly to under insure.

Can you afford to lose a few hundred pounds? I haven't claimed on my insurance for 20 years, and don't expect to, so I save a great deal on my insurance by having a �500 excess. I can comfortably afford to do this and it has saved me more than �500 over the years in reduced premium.

Do you walk round with �s of valuables? Laptop, mobile phone, mp3 and other expensive gadgetry? If not, pointless paying extra to have these insured away from home.

It is possible to cut the cost of your home insurance, bt it is important to be sure you are getting the cover you need, and not paying for cover you don't

[sandmaster]

I agree with Ethel entirely. Cover what you need - take a balanced view. Don't let the banks, for instance, tell you their cover is better because the buildings are insured for millions or contents for, say, �50k. It makes no difference to any claim - you only get what the company or loss adjustor says your claim is worth. Don't understate the values either - this may affect a future claim. Voluntary excesses will reduce your premium. Shop around to get the best value - and then hope that other than providing peace of mind, the whole thing turns out to be a waste of money - after all you don't want a claimable event do you?

[tezestwing]

Thanks Ethel and sandmaster such good points I shall have to have a more detailed account of things and try to better understand the terms and read between the lines on some of the quotes, good point about the excess Ethel thanks Tez