According to a recent survey conducted by Santander over 40% of homeowners who took out a home insurance policy did not read their insurance agreement before taking out a policy.Homeowners that do not read the full terms and conditions of the contract run the risk of being under insured, as they are not fully aware of what their insurance cover actually covers.Research has shown that some policyholders who thought that they were covered for a particular level of coverage like accidental damage, were in fact not covered at all, and face the expensive task of replacing the items at their own expense. This of course could have been avoided had they read the level of cover included on their insurance policy. All homeowners want the best level of cover at the cheapest price for buildings insurance and contents insurance, but they must check to see that the cover meets their insurance needs before taking out a policy. Not all policies are the same and that is why it is so important to read the terms and conditions very carefully making sure that it does in fact meet the right level of cover to protect their home and their possessions.See our home insurance comparison table for more information or our guides and tips pages.
According to Tesco Finance the cost of not changing home insurance companies last year totalled GBP26 million.
The study found that almost two thirds of people remained with their existing insurance providers when it came to renewal time, even though almost half of them saw the cost increase over the previous year. For around 4 million of them the increase was more than the level of inflation, said a Tesco Finance spokesman, even though only a small number of these had increased their cover or made a claim.
The advice that comes out loud and clear from Tesco is that everyone should at least get a couple of alternative quotes at renewal time to make sure they are getting the best home insurance deal available.
Results from a recent Sainsburys Bank survey show around 4.7 million adults in the UK are without home contents insurance cover.
The most insured area in the UK is Yorkshire and Humberside, where 96 percent of people have contents insurance. This contrasts with London, the least insured place in the country, where only 78 percent of people have cover. Sainsburys Bank urge people without home insurance to get cover as it offers peace of mind and financial cover for what can end up as a significant sum.
With regard to the reasons for not having contents insurance the main reason given was that it simply was not required. This was followed by it being too costly. A Sainsburys Bank spokesman suggested these people should firstly tot up the value of their possessions and then check online to see how inexpensive home contents insurance can be.
