Home Insurance: Beyond Buildings and Contents What Else Should You Cover?

by gclatworthy on April 2, 2013

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Everyone has the dream of owning their own home one day and living the simple life. Many of us, once we purchase a home, think that we’re set. Unfortunately, many fail to realize that they could lose everything in just one catastrophe or accident at the home. This is definitely why most Brits invest in home insurance, and this type of coverage protects homeowners from numerous types of incidents that could occur.

It’s important to note, however, that there are some things that traditional home insurance will not cover. Luckily, there are optional extras that people can add to their home’s policy that will cover just about any contingency that one could imagine.

Legal Cover

Unfortunately, the world is full of people who will file a legal claim against someone if given the slightest chance. This is why insurance prices can be so costly in the first place. Most wouldn’t imagine that a home insurance policy could help in every type of litigious matter, but in actuality, it can.Legal coverage can help a person cover court costs if they’re being sued, but it can also help them bring forth litigation if necessary. This could be in relation to employment grievances, boundary disputes or really any civil legal matter that one could imagine. A person will thank themselves for getting this coverage if they end up in court.

Emergency Cover

Emergency cover is one of the extra options that homeowners can add to their home policies, and it handles exactly what its name implies. Emergencies can happen at any time. These can include something as minor as needing a locksmith after accidentally breaking a key off in a doorknob or something as immediately necessary as emergency plumbing situations.

Emergency coverage will allow homeowners to quickly handle a host of home related issues that traditional coverage may not cover. It’s important to discuss these extras with an insurer, and it’s also important to know what isn’t covered in the original home insurance. If something seems like it might be necessary but isn’t included in the normal policy, it’s likely that it’s available as an extra. Using a comparison website, such as Monkey.co.uk, to search for quotes, allows you to see what is included in a policy as well as what coverage is available as an extra option.

Accidental Damage Cover

In one sense, most damage that occurs to a home is an accident. Fires and floods, for instance, definitely aren’t planned. Damage caused by these catastrophes, however, is usually covered. There are accidents, though, that a homeowner may cause themselves which won’t be covered in a normal home insurance policy. A homeowner can assume that if an accident occurs through their own negligence, it’s likely that they’ll need accidental damage coverage.

Accidental damage coverage handles a variety of different things that may occur around a home. If an individual was trying to fix their own plumbing and accidentally destroyed a water pipe, for instance, this policy would be able to pay for repairs even though a traditional policy may not. This type of cover may also take care of anything from accidentally knocking over the TV to spilling a glass of wine on white carpeting.

These optional extras are actually very good investments. There are always going to be people out there who claim that this additional coverage is just a waste of money, but they definitely won’t be singing that tune if one of the aforementioned accidents occurs and they’re left to cover the bill themselves. Every homeowner works hard and behaves responsibly so that they can afford their own home, and only by continuing to be responsible and purchasing these extras will they ensure that they and their home are protected. 

As a homeowner, author Georgina Clatworthy knows the importance of having adequate insurance coverage when it comes to her property. Legal cover is just one option that homeowners should consider adding, and comparison website, Monkey.co.uk makes it easy to see what is included as standard in a policy as well as what is available as optional coverage.  It is also possible to adjust premiums by adding or removing optional coverage, allowing you to find the right level of insurance at a premium you can afford.

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