Before contracting any service or buying any product, it is always advisable to know some minimum guidelines about it, the basic characteristics that at least will allow you to distinguish a bargain from a scam. Here are the ones that we believe will ensure that you do not fail in the choice of your home insurance, at least in the fundamentals.
Suggestions for choosing your home insurance
- Stop and think, for a minute, about the total value of your contents: “contents” are understood as those goods that, in a hypothetical move, you could take with you to your new home. Sofas, furniture, televisions, household appliances, jewelry, computers, clothes… Whatever you estimate will be what you should put in the policy (no less, no more).
- Contract the coverage of aesthetic damage: this guarantee offers the replacement of those parts of the building that have lost the aesthetic harmony of the room in the event of a loss. That is: the entire floor must be replaced, the entire tiling of the bathroom, or the entire room must be painted, because even if the damage is localized in a small area, the tiles are already discontinued, or the entire room must be painted, etc. This is achieved thanks to the “aesthetic damage” (better the option of 3,000 € limit). Nowadays there is also a guarantee for aesthetic damage to the contents; ask us which company offers it.
- Visit our Ranking of best home insurance
About the Civil Liability Warranty
- THREE) In the “Civil Liability” guarantee, which covers the damages you may cause to a third party (the neighbor, or the person your little son broke the glass with the ball), do not go below 300,000 € of coverage. This seems outrageous; however, it will not be the first case we have had in the brokerage in which a broken pipe in winter damages the apartment below, which had antique furniture, Persian carpets and priceless jewelry. What we come to say is, as you don’t know what your downstairs neighbor has, don’t hesitate to go up from 150,000 to 300,000; it probably won’t come to 10 € too much.
- Take out the “private or family CR”: this allows us to be covered for practically any contingency that, even outside our home, may endanger our assets.
For example: if I have a dog, the damage it causes to a third party (if it is dangerous, it is likely to require separate insurance); if I ride a bicycle and unintentionally cause damage to someone, it is covered; if my son unintentionally knocks over a vase from a store, or a friend’s iPhone, it is also covered.
The virtue of truth
- Do not lie about anything: neither about the protections of the home, nor about the value of the contents (lowering it to save 15% of the cost of the insurance), nor about the value of my jewelry or the amount I have in storage.
The reason is very simple: we know that insurers are increasingly being lied to in the event of a claim. For this reason, the companies appoint experts, with the purpose of making sure that the valuations are correct, and that everything in the domicile coincides with the policy. If we do not comply with this, we may find that they may not pay anything for it.
These are some guidelines that may help you to avoid making a mistake. However, each company has its trick: some unwanted sub-limit, some coverage that is not basic, but complementary, certain guarantees that only some companies offer. For this reason, having a brokerage company will help you in the management of claims, to avoid unwanted surprises.
If you need any further advice, or want us to make a comparison between the best home insurance companies, do not hesitate to contact us.
