Contents insurance covers your own possessions and those of close family members that permanently live with you.
The simplest way to understand what is covered by contents insurance is to imagine all the items that you would take with you if you move home.
Standard contents insurance generally only covers your possessions when they are inside your home, if you want to cover items when they are away from your home you need to extend your insurance to include personal possessions cover.
You don't have to have contents insurance. However it's a good idea to do so because if any of your contents are lost, stolen or damaged you would need to have the financial means to replace them.
Typically, contents insurance covers you for:
- Flooding
- Fire
- Lightning
- Storm
- Earthquake
- Subsidence
- Theft
- Escape of water
If you want cover for loss or damage that is caused by an accident, e.g. spilling wine on your carpet, you will need to extend your insurance to include accidental damage cover.
That's simple, its how much your possessions are worth.
Many people underestimate the cost of their possessions so make sure that you include everything in your home, and any garages and outbuildings.
Some insurers offer a fixed amount of cover, however it is still important to calculate the value of your possessions so you can be surt that you have enough cover in place. You should review the value of your items on a regular basis too.
If your property is in a high flood risk area, there is a greater chance that you are likely to make a claim, so when buying flood insurance it is really important that you have the right cover in place.
We've produced a two part guide to help people in high flood risk areas understand in more detail the types of insurance that you can buy to protect their home, and some of the features and benefits that may important to them.
