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Cover for the building and everything in it
Buildings insurance covers the fabric of your home — walls, roof, floors, windows, permanent fixtures like fitted kitchens and bathrooms, and usually garages, sheds and boundary walls.
It's there to rebuild or repair after fire, flood, storm, subsidence, escape of water, impact or vandalism.
Contents insurance covers the things you'd take with you if you moved: furniture, appliances, electronics, clothes, jewellery, bikes, tools.
Most people take both together on a single policy, which is simpler to run and often cheaper than two separate ones.
Homeowners generally need buildings cover as a condition of their mortgage. Tenants generally need contents cover only, since the building is usually the landlord's responsibility.
The structure of your home
Covers the fabric of your home, including walls, roof, floors, windows and permanent fixtures such as fitted kitchens and bathrooms.
It usually also includes garages, sheds and boundary walls.
Everything you'd take with you
Covers the belongings you'd take with you if you moved, including furniture, appliances, electronics, clothes, jewellery, bikes and tools.
What it's there to protect against
Fire
Cover for damage caused by fire, subject to the policy terms.
Flood
Protection against insured flood damage.
Storm
Cover for insured storm damage to the property.
Subsidence
Cover where the policy provides protection for insured subsidence damage.
Escape of water
Cover for insured damage caused by escaped water.
Impact or vandalism
Protection against insured impact or vandalism damage.
Which cover do you need?
Homeowners generally need buildings cover as a condition of their mortgage.
Tenants generally need contents cover only, since the building is usually the landlord's responsibility.
Most people take buildings and contents together on a single policy, which is simpler to run and often cheaper than two separate ones.
Underinsurance
Two figures cause the trouble: rebuild cost and contents value. Getting them wrong can leave you without enough cover when you need it.
Rebuild cost is not market value
It's what it would cost to demolish and rebuild the property, and on many homes it's considerably lower than the sale price — though on period or non-standard construction it can be higher.
Guessing is risky in both directions.
Contents add up faster than people think
Walk through each room and total it honestly. Most households significantly underestimate.
Why getting the figures right matters
If you're insured for less than the true figure, insurers can reduce a claim proportionately — even a partial one.
Getting these numbers right at the start is one of the most valuable things you can do.
Additional cover you may want to look at
Accidental damage
The spilled paint, the foot through the ceiling, the TV knocked off the wall.
Personal possessions away from home
Phones, laptops, watches, pushchairs and other belongings covered outside the house.
High-value items
Anything above the single-item limit usually has to be specified individually.
Home emergency and legal expenses
Cover for things such as boiler breakdowns, burst pipes and disputes.
What standard cover may not include
Wear and tear, gradual damage, poor maintenance, and damage while the property is left unoccupied beyond the period stated in the policy.
If you're going to be away for an extended spell, or the house is empty during a renovation, tell your insurer — restrictions commonly begin somewhere around the 30 to 60 day mark, though it varies by policy.
Make sure the sums insured reflect reality
The biggest issue is often not whether you have buildings and contents cover, but whether the amounts insured are enough.
Rebuild cost and the value of everything in your home need to be considered separately. Underestimating either can affect what an insurer pays following a claim.
We'll help you understand what needs to be covered and where additional protection may be appropriate.
Don't let your cover fall behind
Renewal quotes can drift upwards, and the sums insured that were right three years ago may not be now — particularly after an extension, a new kitchen, or a run of building cost inflation.
Check the property
Extensions, renovations and improvements can change the amount of buildings cover you need.
Check the contents
New furniture, electronics, jewellery and other possessions can increase the value of your contents.
Review at renewal
Check that the sums insured and optional covers still reflect your circumstances.
Getting it right
Buildings and contents insurance is straightforward in principle, but the details matter. The rebuild figure, contents value, single-item limits, exclusions and optional covers can all affect what happens when you claim.
We'll help you understand what needs to be insured, what the different options cover, and where the important limits and exclusions sit.
Get no obligation and fast advice today
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