Home insurance is a type of insurance policy and coverage that provides a layer of financial protection on your property. It covers the structural components of a property as well as some of the items inside from loss, theft, or damage.
Generally, home insurance has two main components – building insurance and contents insurance. The former covers the structures in your home, such as the roof, walls, and windows. The latter covers your personal belongings, including your technological devices and jewellery.
As a homeowner, you have a choice of choosing separate policies for each type of home insurance or you can take them out as a combined policy. Neither is significantly cheaper than the other but different providers will offer varying premiums. Thus, checking what type of benefits and coverage you can get is crucial when looking at insurance policies.
Regardless of the type of home insurance policy that you choose, it’s important to know exactly what is covered in your chosen plan. Knowing the extent of your coverage is important to know when you are able to make a claim.
You might be wondering ‘what does home insurance cover?’. Let’s answer this question in more detail!
What Does Home Insurance Cover?
Home insurance policies cover your home for a wide range of things. It’s designed to protect you financially in certain events, such as fires, floods, and burglaries. Some (not all) home insurance plans also cover accidental damage, such as if you drill through a water pipe on your property and cause a leak.
Here are some of the things that are covered with most home insurance policies:
- Fire damage – coverage for damages to your house or belongings caused by fire
- Flood damage – coverage for the costs of repairing damage caused by flooding caused by excessive rainfall or an overflowing river
- Storm damage – if your property is damaged in a storm, certain damages will be covered by your home insurance policy
- Burglary – if your belongings are stolen or your property is damaged due to a burglary, some of the costs may be covered by your policy
- Vandalism – should your property be vandalised, the costs of repairing the damaged areas of your house will be covered in your policy
- Burst water pipes and leaks – if you accidentally drill into a water pipe in your home, causing water leakage, this could be covered in your insurance policy
What Does Home Insurance Not Cover?
Home insurance doesn’t cover everything in your house and it’s important to know exactly what your policy covers so that you know if and when you can make a claim. Your home insurance policy is unlikely to cover:
- General wear and tear
- Lack of proper maintenance
- Damage caused by pets or pests
- Deliberate damage to the property (aside from vandalism or burglary-related damage)
- Frost damage
- Breakdown of appliances
You might be able to add extras onto your policy to get coverage for home emergency cover, legal cover, and bicycle cover.