Posts Tagged ‘Home Insurance’
Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010
It is painfully acknowledged that there has been a huge fall in house prices in Ireland since the economic downturn commenced in 2008. The average price reduction is estimated to be some 30% of the 2008 price, but in midland areas of the country, 50% is generally accepted as being a more accurate figure.
With such a fall in the value of houses, you should prudently consider what value you are insuring your home in the event of a disaster befalling you and your house being destroyed. The value you insure your house, or any property for that matter, is not what it would fetch on the open market, but the actual replacement cost.
Because higher values are declared on home insurance policies, higher premiums have to be paid by the householder. Many people are unaware that there is a big difference between what the market value of their home is and what it would actually cost to reconstruct it in the event of it being completely destroyed.
The housing bubble that occurred in Ireland from the mid-nineties to 2007 provided home owners with a rapid increase in the worth of their properties. Many seen their homes double in value over a short few years. They thus insured them according to the values pertaining in the marketplace secure in the knowledge that if tragedy struck and their home was burned down they would be well covered in compensation from the insurance company.
Just because you, or even an independent valuation expert, consider your home worth, say 1 million, for example, does not mean that this is what you will receive from your insurer if your house was totally destroyed in an incident. For arguments sake, let’s say your home is approximately 2000 square feet in size and worth 1million if you were to sell it. If it were totally destroyed and had to be completely rebuilt, an insurance assessor will calculate that it would cost 250 per square foot to reconstruct it. You will then end up getting 500,000 from the insurance company which you will pay the builder to leave you with a home of the standard you had before. You are not going to make any gain on it. Therefore, you were paying double the premiums over the years in the misguided belief that if something happened to your home, you would make a tidy profit. Be accurate in the value you put on a proposal form. It is not the market value of the house.
Learn more about Home Insurance. Stop by Seamus Maguire’s site where you can find out all about House Insurance and what it can do for you.
Tags: Home Insurance, house insurance, Insurance Posted in Insurance | No Comments »
Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010
How much you will spend for a cheap house insurance policy? There are many ways that you can help reduce the cost of your house insurance and many of these ways are things that you can do yourself.
It is often said that moving house is one of the most stressful aspects of modern life. What is potentially more stressful is the thought of any accident damaging that home or losing valuable items in a burglary. Knowing the right insurance for your personal needs is important for your long term peace of mind.
If this seems a bit much, there are simpler and cheaper methods, such as decoy fake security cameras and fake rocks to store outdoor keys. Surprisingly, people often leave tools outside unlocked, a perfect opportunity for a break in!
In some cases, it might be worth using a specialized high value contents policy. This is for people who have items over a certain amount. You can calculate if you are suitable for this kind of policy by adding up the price of the items in your property. As well as the more obvious items like fridges and televisions, this also covers smaller items like CDs and clothes.
Once you have created this list, keep it away from your home. Physical copies should be kept with either a next of kin or another trusted friend or relative. You can also use email or other file sharing websites to keep a virtual copy of the list so that it can always be accessed.
When comparing prices for your house insurance policy, different companies may offer more suitable policies for the buildings or the contents or possibly even visa versa. In some cases, the contents insurance is offered for free when you take out a buildings policy. Getting a variety of quotes gives you the chance to look over the best possible prices. Some comparison sites offer clear checklists to see if the policy is suitable for you, clearly highlighting the various features each one has to offer.
Comparing prices should cover both the building and contents policies. Some companies offer discounts when buying both together, while there are some that will include free contents when taking out a buildings insurance policy. Remember though that buildings policies only cover the rebuilding cost of a property not its market value. You can calculate this online with a rebuilding calculator.
There are a wide variety of discounts available, some of which may not necessarily be online. This is why it is a good idea to get as many different quotes as possible as you can then discuss this further with your insurer. You should try to haggle and get a better price or in some cases get extra features included in your policy.
Remember that prices are changing all the time and it is worth keeping an eye on what is available, especially when your existing deal is up for renewal. It is likely you will be contacted anyway by your insurer, so it is a good idea to be prepared for that incoming call with the right information to hand.
Not entirely sure how much you will spend on a cheap house insurance policy ? Get the ultimate inside scoop now in our complete house insurance quote guide.
Tags: cheap home insurance, cheap house insurance, Home Insurance, house insurance, Insurance Posted in Insurance | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 27th, 2010
Many people buy home insurance policies without shopping around or evaluating if they have the best policy for their needs. Insurance can be a costly monthly expense over time. If you make an effort, there are many ways in which you can reduce your insurance premiums and ensure that you are getting the very best value for the premiums you are paying. Here are a few tips on how to save money on your home insurance.
Establish Your Exact Insurance Needs
Many homeowners and tenants take out blanket home insurance without first establishing if the coverage provided meets their specific insurance needs. For example, a homeowner will have different insurance needs from someone who is just renting an apartment. There is also a difference between building insurance and tenant insurance. Ask relevant questions to help establish your insurance needs. Do you own or rent your home? What is the value of your property and household contents? Are there specific items of value that you need to insure separately or specify in your policy? Are there any particular risks that you should be aware of? Take a notepad and write down all the answers to these questions before going any further.
Get the Help of a Professional
Some people do not like the idea of working through a broker. In recent years, insurance brokers sometimes had a reputation for selling policies that weren’t backed with proper customer service. However, there are still reputable insurance brokers around and they have a wealth of knowledge that can be useful when you are looking to understand and find the best home insurance policy for you. They may tell you about risks or aspects of insurance that you may not be aware of. They can also generally get you a wide range of quotes from different insurance companies so you can compare.
Do Your Own Research
Do some research on your own to find out who the most reputable insurance companies are and what types of policies are available. Ask friends, family members and colleagues for their recommendations and input. Make sure you only take heed of opinions from people who you trust or respect. You need to know that you are getting honest advice. One of the best sources for information is to go online. You can read a wide range of articles on the Internet that provide advice and reviews on different insurance companies. You can also research the companies, check their corporate reputations and product offerings, and get comparative quotes. Many companies deal directly with customers online and because of this, they can offer good value for money.
The Key to Getting the Best Deal Is to Compare and Shop Around
Regardless of whether you choose to go through a broker or directly through an insurance company, the only way you can be sure you are getting the best deal is to compare different quotes. Make sure you are comparing similar insurance values and benefits. Also, check if there are any specific exclusions or terms and conditions that could affect your claim. Read the fine print and make sure you understand what you are getting for your policy. Check up on any deductible amounts that are payable should you submit a claim. Also, research feedback from past customers as to what level of service they received when submitting their claim. Sometime cheap companies have shocking customer service so it is not worth the savings you get from them. Instead, go for a more reputable company who you can be sure will process your claim speedily.
Additional Benefits Offered by Insurance Companies
In recent years, insurance companies have started to reward their loyal customers by offering additional benefits to them. Some policies institute a cash-back bonus which customers receive if they haven’t claimed for a period of time. Other policies provide their customers with reduced premiums based on their no-claim track record. Sometimes these bonuses are in the form of gift vouchers that customers can use to make household purchases or put towards home improvements. While at first glance some of these offers may seem gimmicky, they often contain genuine value for the customers. If over time your insurance premiums are decreasing rather than increasing because you have not lodged a claim, this can result in you benefiting and saving on your insurance premiums. Many of these insurance benefits can be very worthwhile.
Real Insurance is a part of the Hollard Group of companies. The Hollard Group has offices in the United States, the UK, South Africa, Australia and throughout South East Asia and provides a wide range of insurance products and services to more than 6 million policyholders worldwide. For more information about Real income protection, visit us online today!
Tags: business, family, home, home business, Home Insurance, Insurance Posted in Insurance | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 20th, 2010
If you recently purchased a home, then you are being responsible and very adult by looking into a plan to insure your precious commodity in case of anything bad. This way, you will not have to pay countless dollars out of pocket if tragedy strikes your house, such as a fire or a theft that could leave you penniless if you do not have insurance. Naturally, you are not looking to spend a ton of money on this, but you should know what to look out for with cheap house insurance that may make you want to spend a little more.
You should definitely know one crucial thing about cheap plans and that is that sometimes, they are not real plans at all, but simply cons thought up by con artists. When a plan sounds way too good to be true, it probably is not true, so be on the lookout for services like that.
There are a lot of scams out there and with insurance especially, the scammers are relying on the fact that you will probably never need their services. This way, they are able to con countless innocent home owners out of their money before anyone ever needs to take advantage of their services and by then, they are long gone. If the plan seems like it is too cheap to be real, then it might not in fact be real at all.
Assuming the service that you found is a legitimate and real one, there are still some reasons that you may not want the cheapest one out there. Often, the less the service costs, the less it provides, which may be too little to be helpful at all.
It is smart to read the fine print and see exactly what they are covering. Compare it with some of the pricier services and see if there are significant differences between what one offers and what the other does. You do not want to pay lots of money for insurance only to have it backfire by not covering the thing that you need it to when the time comes.
A good idea would be to make a list of things that are most necessary for you, depending on where you live and your lifestyle. If your home is not in the safest area, then robberies might be a real concern for you, so check and make sure that is one of the things they will cover. If that is something they leave off, but they cover fire, this may not be a smart trade-off for you and you should not buy their plan.
As you tally up the pros and cons of the different plans, you should carefully consider your personal life, as opposed to that of your closest friends or relatives that recommend their own plans. They might have very different needs than you, so the insurance that they pay for might not be the best choice for you to get, regardless of how satisfied they are with its services.
When you know what to look out for with cheap house insurance, then you will be able to make a proper decision. You might decide to still pay less, or you may opt for a pricier plan that covers more. The decision is all yours to make, just make sure you approach it in an informed and calculated way.
Searching all over the net for a top house insurance quote ? We’ve got the inside scoop on the best in our cheap house insurance cover overview.
Tags: cheap home insurance, cheap house insurance, Home Insurance, house insurance, Insurance Posted in Insurance | No Comments »
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