The festive season is upon us. A time of family, togetherness and most importantly – presents! In a time of gift giving, it’s important to consider how you can protect any fancy new gadgets or expensive gifts you may receive this year. It would be devastating enough for your home to be broken into or damaged by fire or flooding – but the added anguish of losing your valuables could make it even harder. Of course, no one wants to think about these things happening to them – but it’s essential that you’re protected just in case.
Contents insurance is an optional protection plan that covers the contents of your home against damage caused by things such as fire, flooding and theft. Of course, these aren’t things anyone wants to think about over the festive period – but the alternative could be a lot worse. In a time where money is tight for millions of people, the prospect of having to pay large sums of money to repair or replace damaged or stolen goods could put a real strain on household budgets. Personal Belongings cover can be added to a Contents policy. This covers a range of various valuable belongings that wouldn’t otherwise be included under a contents insurance policy. Such things could include mobile phones, laptops, jewellery and camera equipment.
Usually, you’ll be covered against fire, flooding and theft – although accidental damage cover can be added as an optional extra. It’d be a real shame if your brand new sofa was damaged during a particularly animated game of Christmas charades – so this could be an option worth considering!
Most policies will offer new for old cover. This means you will get the full replacement cost of any damaged or stolen items. However, some policies will only cover the current value of the items in question, so it’s worth checking the fine print of a policy before deciding what’s right for you.
Contents insurance policies are usually worked out on a sum insured or bedroom rated basis. With a sum-insured policy, you get to put forward the figure you wish to be insured for based on the full value of the contents of your home. Alternatively, a bedroom-rated policy means that the amount you are covered for is based on the number of rooms in your house.
With Christmas just around the corner, many will be looking forward to both giving and receiving gifts. It’s therefore so important to make sure the contents of your home are protected against flooding, fire and theft.
If you’d like to know more about how contents insurance can help you this holiday season, get in touch with one of our adviser's today!