Home Insurance Explained

Whilst home insurance is not strictly compulsory, if you have a mortgage then your lender may insist on you making sure you purchase buildings and contents insurance as a condition of the loan. They are simply looking after their investment — and yours — so that if something happens which results in your home being destroyed or badly damaged, the rebuilding costs would be met.

Home insurance, or contents insurance (as it is sometimes known) delivers the means to find the money to replace everything, following a loss involving buildings or contents (or both). Home insurance provides you with reassurance and security for the most valuable, material item in your life.

Columbus Home Insurance options

The best way to see the value of Columbus Home Insurance is to go ahead and take a few minutes getting a quote once you have entered some of your details. Here are the main types of cover available:

Building Insurance

For your building insurance you'll want all the main aspects of your home protected, from pillar to post. Cover is for the home together with its permanent fixtures and fittings, usually including:

  • domestic outbuildings
  • swimming pools
  • tennis courts
  • paths, drives, patios and terraces
  • walls, gates and fences
  • fixed fuel tanks

which you own or which you are legally responsible for, within the premises.

Contents Insurance

Home contents insurance is a more all encompassing insurance for the items within your home. Household goods and personal property within the home, which belong to you or for which you are legally responsible, usually including:

  • furniture (some fixed furniture such as fitted wardrobes are covered under buildings)
  • radio and television aerials, satellite dishes and their fittings and masts
  • property in the open but within the premises
  • cash, credit cards, deeds, registered bonds and other personal documents
  • medal, stamp or coin collections
  • jewellery, precious stones, articles made from gold, silver and other precious metals, watches and furs
  • office equipment
  • clocks, collectors' items, pictures and other works of art
  • photographic equipment, binoculars, guns, telescopes and musical instruments
  • rare and unusual figurines and ornaments
  • domestic oil in fixed fuel oil tanks
  • metered water.

It is important to check the limits of these items in the home insurance policy documents.

How to keep your premiums down?

In these days of credit crunch and everyday bills not so much creeping, as shooting up, everyone wants cheaper home insurance. As you are probably aware, there are ways to decrease your premium over time. Here are the main things you can do:

Sign up for Neighbourhood watch scheme: not only could this lower your premium, but this could make you feel more part of the community and maybe even a little safer.

Use of double lock: always advisable.

Fire Alarms: obviously a safety issue for everyone, but also another way to lower your home contents insurance premiums.

Home Insurance Quote
 

Benefits at a glance

  • Up to 20% discount for combined buildings and contents cover
  • Up to £1.5m buildings cover
  • Up to £300,000 contents cover
  • 24hr emergency claims line
  • 48hr money-back guarantee*

* Please see further details
in our terms of use.