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Home insurance, or house insurance, can help cover the cost of repairing or rebuilding your property or replacing your belongings if they are damaged or lost. This could be due to a storm, fire, flood, burglary or other events. Whether you’re ready to compare quotes, or want more insight into how home insurance works, everything you need is here.
When getting quotes to compare home insurance, you’ll need to be prepared to provide details such as:
The type of cover you’re looking for: buildings and contents insurance combined, buildings insurance on its own, or contents insurance on its own.
Your property: whether it’s a house, bungalow, detached, terrace or flat, when it was built, the number of rooms, roof type, the locks on your windows and doors, for example.
The cost of rebuilding your property: a rough idea will do, and there’s a handy estimating tool alongside the question to give you a steer.
Your ownership: including when you bought the property, who lives there, and whether someone is usually at home or not.
What you want to be insured: think about furniture, clothes, laptops, bikes and other valuables, and try to work out what it would cost to replace everything – there’s a contents calculator to give you a hand.
You and the policy: when the cover needs to begin, what excess you’re willing to pay, any extras you want such as accidental damage, and any no claims discount to carry over to your new policy.
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What is home insurance?
Home insurance helps cover the costs of replacing or repairing your home or belongings if they’re damaged, destroyed or stolen. Depending on the cover your policy provides, home insurance usually pays out in the event of a fire, storm, flood or theft.
What are the different types of home insurance?
Home insurance in the UK is made up of buildings and contents insurance. These are often bought together in a single home insurance policy, though if you only want one type of cover, or want to buy each from different insurers, they can also be bought separately.
Buildings insurance
Buildings insurance covers the physical structure of your property including the roof, windows, walls and pipes, as well as permanent fixtures and fittings, such as built-in kitchen units, toilets and baths. It can also cover some things outside the property, such as your garage, patio, sheds and drains.
Contents insurance
Contents insurance protects your belongings, including clothes, furniture, white goods and other electricals. Generally, it covers what you would take with you if you moved, but it can also include curtains and carpets. Some policies also include cover for the contents of your freezer.
It can be cheaper to buy a combined buildings and contents insurance policy, but it’s important to check the cover that you’re getting, and the excesses you may have to pay if making a claim.
How does home insurance work?
When taking out home insurance, you agree on a cover amount with the insurer, which is the maximum payout you can receive if you make a valid claim.
You may also need to pay something towards the claim yourself. You’ll agree this ‘excess’ with an insurer when you apply. Typically, there’s a compulsory excess you always have to pay, and a voluntary excess which is an amount you get to decide. Paying a higher voluntary excess usually lowers the cost of your home insurance.
You may also have the option to include various add-ons to a standard policy, for example, to protect your belongings outside the home and payout for accidental damage.
Do you need home insurance?
You don’t have to have home insurance by law, though some mortgage lenders require homeowners to have buildings insurance as part of the mortgage agreement. This is so they know the cost of making repairs or rebuilding your home after damage would be covered.
If you’re renting your home, buildings insurance is the landlord’s responsibility. However, you’ll need to take out your own renters contents insurance if you want to cover your belongings for damage or theft. The same applies if you’re a student living in halls of residence or rented accommodation.
If you’re a landlord, standard home insurance policies may not provide the cover needed for a buy to let. Instead, landlord home insurance can offer protection for issues such as the cost of alternative accommodation for tenants if your property is uninhabitable or lost rental income, up to a maximum amount.
You can also get specialist home insurance for holiday homes, listed buildings and unoccupied homes. This is because there are different considerations and risks for properties that aren’t your main residence, or made from specialist materials.
Even though it isn’t legally required, it is sensible to get home insurance. Few of us could afford to rebuild our home, pay for significant structural damage, or replace all our essential belongings, if the worst happened.
It’s generally sensible to have contents insurance as well as buildings insurance, but it’s not compulsory. Bear in mind that buildings insurance on its own won’t cover any damage or loss of TVs, laptops, smartphones, sound systems or games consoles. Your furniture, clothes, carpets, portable garden equipment and other essentials wouldn’t be covered either.
What does home insurance cover?
Exactly what is covered by a home insurance policy will differ between insurers and policies. It may cost extra to cover additional things that a policy doesn’t cover as standard, such as accidental damage. Always check a policy carefully before buying to understand what protection you have and what is excluded.
| What’s usually covered? | What may not be covered? |
|---|---|
| Flooding and storms | Wear and tear or gradual damage |
| Fire, explosions and smoke damage | Deliberate damage |
| Burst, frozen or leaking pipes | Breakdown of appliances, including boiler |
| Water damage | Damage after lack of maintenance or poor handiwork |
| Subsidence | Accidental damage |
| Fallen trees, lampposts, and aerials | Homes unoccupied for long stretches, usually more than 30 days in a row |
| Vehicle or aircraft collision | Damage caused by pets |
| Theft and vandalism | Removing pest infestations |
Home insurance policies often also include personal liability cover. This can help cover legal costs and compensation you may have to pay if someone is injured, or their property is damaged, while in your home, or because of you.
It depends on your home insurance policy, and how and why it happened. If the leak was caused by an unexpected event, such as damage to an otherwise well-maintained roof during a storm or a fire, you should be able to make a claim on your buildings insurance.
If the leak caused damage elsewhere, fixtures and fittings may also be covered by your buildings insurance. You will need to claim on your contents insurance for water damage to your belongings, such as spoiled carpets and curtains.
However, if the leak happened due to lack of maintenance or wear and tear, perhaps through not clearing gutters or not replacing lost tiles, your insurer may not pay out.
Home insurance add-ons
Usually, insurers give you the option to add extra cover to standard home insurance policies. These add-ons typically cost extra but may be worth it if you want the increased protection they provide.
This protects against accidents and mishaps that could cause damage to your property or belongings. This might include spillages on the sofa or carpet, accidentally knocking your TV over or dropping your laptop, a smashed window, or hitting a pipe while doing DIY.
This provides extra cover if something happens that could, or already has, caused serious damage to your home. This typically includes burst water pipes, boiler breakdowns, electrical faults, or perhaps a pest problem, where you need to call on the services of a suitably qualified tradesperson, such as a plumber or electrician, to get it sorted.
Sometimes also called personal belongings cover, this protects some personal possessions you take outside your home against damage or loss. This typically includes phones, laptops and jewellery, but may also cover a certain amount of money and credit cards too.
This normally gives you access to legal advice, and covers your expenses, should you find yourself in a legal dispute. Depending on the policy, this may include situations involving a neighbour, tradesperson, employer or stranger, and may involve compensation for injury, time off work, damage to property, and other costs.
This covers the cost of needing emergency temporary accommodation if you have to move out of your home after a flood, fire, or other reason that makes it unsafe to stay there. Most home insurance policies automatically include this cover, but others may offer it as an add-on at an extra cost.
Specialist bicycle insurance covers the loss or damage to the bikes you have in your household. Protection can apply whether the bike is at home or elsewhere, and should be more comprehensive than any cover you may have under your standard policy.
Some home insurance policies may require you to take out extra cover if you have certain possessions that are high value or considered high risk. The value limit on a single item, or collection of items, is often around £1,500 or £2,000. If an add-on isn’t needed, an insurer may still ask you to list these separately on your policy.
How much is home insurance?
How much home insurance costs depends on several factors, including the type of cover you want, how much protection you need, and your claims history.
How much it would cost to rebuild your home, and the risk of flooding in your area tends to play a big part in the cost of buildings insurance. The value of your belongings and the area you live in will be key in determining the cost of contents insurance. If an insurer thinks you’re more likely to have to make a claim, you’ll likely have to pay more for your home insurance.
How to get cheaper home insurance
There are a few things you can try that may help lower the cost of your home insurance, including:
- Compare more than one provider: Don’t auto renew with your current insurer when your policy is about to end. Shopping around can help you find the lowest price for the cover you need.
- Combine your cover: Buying buildings and contents cover combined rather than two separate policies may save you money, though this isn’t a given.
- Pay annually: Insurers usually charge more if you choose to pay monthly instead of annually.
- Look after your no-claims discount: If you don’t make any claims, you’ll gradually build up your no-claims discount (NCD). The longer you go without claiming, the more you’re likely to save, so it may pay to think carefully if you’re considering a fairly minor claim.
- Only get the cover you need: Adding extras, such as emergency cover, is likely to increase the cost. Also bear in mind that the cover amount for buildings insurance should be the cost of rebuilding it from the ground up, not the market value.
- Choose a higher excess: The higher your voluntary excess, the lower your premium usually is. Just make sure you can afford to pay it, on top of the compulsory excess, if you make a claim.
- Improve your security: Installing approved burglar alarms and other deterrents, such as security cameras, can help reduce premiums. Smoke alarms and high-quality window and door locks may also help keep the cost down.
How much home insurance should I get?
If you’re taking out buildings and contents insurance, the amount of cover should be enough to cover the cost of rebuilding your property and replacing everything in it.
With buildings insurance, it’s the cost of rebuilding the property from the ground up, including labour and materials which is important – this is different from the current market value of your home. Insurers often have calculators on their websites to help you work this out. If you find a buildings insurance policy which offers unlimited cover, calculating the rebuild cost may not be so important. However, it could cost more than a policy which covers a specific amount.
When working out how much contents insurance you need, you don’t want to underestimate it. List all of the things in your home, room-by-room, and estimate how much each item would cost new if it needed to be replaced. Add everything up, including items in your garage, to get an idea of the level of contents insurance you want. Insurance providers usually have calculators that can help, but be aware there may be a maximum amount you can claim for single items, which may need extra cover.
How do you get the best home insurance deal?
Whether you’re buying home insurance for the first time or your current policy is due to renew soon, you don’t have to agree to the first price you’re given.
You can shop around for the best home insurance deal matched to your needs using comparison sites. You can also contact individual insurers directly, negotiate your renewal price with your current insurer, or use a broker to ask for home insurance quotes.
However, the cheapest home insurance isn’t necessarily the best home insurance for you and your needs. There is no point getting cover if it isn’t right for you, or if it leaves you underinsured. Always check that the policy you’re buying does what you need it to do.
What else do you need to know about home insurance?
Here are a few tips to keep in mind when it comes to home insurance:
- If you run a business from home, you may need specific business insurance or have to pay extra on your standard home insurance. Much will depend on the nature of the business and the activities carried out.
- If you’ve shifted to working from home since taking out your policy, you may need to let your insurer know – though it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll need more cover.
- If you are extending, renovating or making structural changes to your home, such as a loft conversion or other building works, tell your insurer before going ahead, or it may invalidate your insurance.
- If you add high-value items to your home after taking out a contents insurance policy, tell your insurer, so you know they are included in your cover.
- If your home is due to be empty for longer than 30 days in a row, standard home insurance won’t usually cover you. Tell your insurer, as you may need unoccupied home insurance for that period.
Home Insurance FAQs
The average annual cost of a combined buildings and contents home insurance policy in the UK was £375 in the first quarter of 2024. The average standalone buildings insurance policy cost £298 a year, and the average standalone contents insurance policy cost £132 a year, according to the Association of British Insurers.
Whether contents insurance of £50,000 is enough will depend on the possessions you own, and how much it would cost to replace those items if bought new.
The cost of home insurance in the first quarter of 2024 was 19% higher compared with a year earlier, according to the Association of British Insurers. The number of claims made, insurance premium tax, and the changing cost of labour and repairs can all affect the cost of home insurance generally.
It can be cheaper to buy a combined buildings and contents insurance policy, but it’s important to check the cover that you’re getting, and the excesses you may have to pay if making a claim.
Shopping around, getting the exact cover you need, choosing a combined buildings and contents policy, paying your premium annually, and increasing your excess could all lower the cost of a home insurance quote.
Standard home insurance won’t usually cover fixing a boiler that has broken down, but it depends on the terms of your policy. If you have home emergency cover as part of your home insurance, boiler repairs may be included. Alternatively, you can take out standalone boiler cover, or you may be able to add it to your home insurance policy, at an extra cost.
Buildings insurance is a type of home insurance, which covers the bricks and mortar of your property, as well as its permanent fixtures and fittings. This includes the walls, roof, floors, fitted bathrooms and built-in kitchens. It may also provide cover outside for your gates, hedges, patios and outbuildings.
No, taking out buildings and contents insurance isn’t compulsory, and there is no law that says you have to have it – though some mortgage providers insist that you have buildings insurance as a condition of the property loan.
But whether you’re mortgage-free, have a mortgage or are renting, it’s a good idea to consider home insurance. Replacing everything you own, repairing structural damage or rebuilding a property if something happened would otherwise be expensive.
Home insurance specifically for unoccupied property is available. Standard home insurance doesn’t usually provide cover if a home is left unoccupied for more than 30 days in a row. You may find standard policies which allow 60 days or give you the option to purchase an add-on to give cover. If not, you’ll need unoccupied home insurance, which is likely to cost more, but means you will be protected if your home is empty for an extended period of time.
If your contents insurance has a new-for-old policy, and you make a valid claim for a stolen or damaged item, the insurer would pay for a like-for-like, new replacement, or repair it as new. So wear and tear or how it might have reduced in value over time won’t be taken into account. The exception may be for belongings that wear out fast, such as bed linen.
You won’t need buildings insurance if you rent, but you might want to take out contents insurance in case your belongings are lost, damaged or stolen. It is your landlord’s responsibility to take out building insurance because they own the property. But even if your landlord has contents insurance to cover their possessions in the property, perhaps because it’s part-furnished, it won’t cover anything that belongs to you. Some insurers offer particular contents insurance for renters, often referred to as tenants’ or renters’ insurance.
You won’t need to arrange buildings insurance if you’re a student living in rented accommodation or halls of residence, but you should consider getting contents insurance to protect your possessions. Some insurers offer specific student contents insurance for those studying away from home. It is up to the landlord of the property, or the university if you’re in halls, to arrange buildings insurance, if they wish to.
Paying home insurance annually, upfront in one go, is usually cheaper than paying monthly premiums. This is because some insurers charge interest if you choose to pay monthly.
You must contact your insurer if you want to claim on your house insurance policy. Many insurers have dedicated claims helplines ready to take calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Be prepared to share details of what has happened and what has been damaged or lost.
Voluntary excess is an amount you decide to pay towards any claim you make. It is paid on top of the compulsory excess that is set by an insurer, but you get to choose the level of voluntary excess you’re willing to pay when setting up your policy. Committing to paying a higher excess usually lowers the cost of home insurance premiums.
An insurer may carry out a soft search of your credit score to check certain details if you’re getting a home insurance quote, but this won’t affect, or remain, on your credit report. A hard credit search, which could have an effect on your score and will be visible, could be carried out if you decide to take a policy out.
» MORE: What is a credit check?
A poor or bad credit score could increase the cost of your home insurance, particularly if you want to pay for your cover monthly. Insurers use your credit history to help assess the risk you may pose as a policyholder.
Standard home insurance policies may not provide cover if you start major building work, particularly if it affects the structure of your property. It’s best to check with your insurer for anything beyond smaller DIY projects and renovations, in case you need specialist cover.
You can ask your insurer if you’re able to take your home insurance with you if you move house. However, depending on the size of the property you’re moving to, the area, and the various security aspects of the new home, there’s a good chance your premiums will change.
It should be possible to get home insurance in flood risk areas, but it’s likely your cover will cost more. The Government’s Flood Re scheme should be able to help if you’re struggling to find affordable cover due to the risk of flood.
Most home insurance policies will cover subsidence if it isn’t a problem that’s been associated with the property before. However, home insurance is likely to cost more, and more difficult to find, if the property has experienced subsidence in the past.
It’s a good idea to tell your home insurance provider if you work from home. Depending on your job, it could affect your premiums, or mean you need a particular add-on, or a different type of policy, such as business insurance, to be covered.
If you think you can’t make, or miss, a monthly payment, contact your insurer. Missing a payment could cancel your cover or see your insurer refuse to pay out if you make a claim. You could also be charged a penalty fee, and your credit score could be affected.
Depending on the nature of the claim, and how many you’ve made, there’s a good chance your premiums will rise when it’s time to renew. Making a claim may also mean you lose your no-claims discount.
It’s possible to cancel a home insurance policy at any time. If you want to cancel a policy you’ve just bought, you’ll automatically have a 14-day cooling off period in which to do so. You should get a refund of any premiums you’ve already paid, but there may be fees for cancelling.
If your cover has been in place longer, you can still cancel, but you won’t get the money back for the premiums covering the time you’ve been insured. However, if you paid an annual premium upfront, and haven’t made a claim, you may get a refund covering the period of time the cover won’t now be in place.
You could get a refund if you’ve paid your premium upfront and decide to cancel part way through the cover, without having made a claim. So if you cancel after nine months, you could be refunded for the three months of premiums that are left to run. Note that there may be cancellation fees to pay.
You should also get a refund of any premiums paid if you cancel within the first 14 days of your policy.
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