What are the Options for House Insurance Cover for Expensive Houses?

Finding an adequate house insurance policy to cover your luxury house and its contents is not always easy. You want to make sure that both your house and your valuables are covered and fully protected against environmental hazards, theft and fire. A regular house insurance policy may not provide you with the amount of cover you need for expensive jewellery or antiques. Instead, you may need to consider high value contents insurance.

What is High Value Insurance?

Specialised high value house insurance companies typically offer buildings insurance for houses that have a rebuild value at or above £350,000. As well as providing cover against storms, floods and fires, some specialised companies also offer accidental damage cover as part of the regular policy. Cover may also be paid out for any restoration work you should need and the loss in value that may occur as the result of an incident, accidental or otherwise.

Contents insurance may also be offered separately for those who have possessions with a total value at or above £100,000. This is an opportunity for houseowners to insure a variety of expensive possessions such as jewellery, fine arts and antiques, and again, accidental damage is typically included in the standard policy for this type of insurance. Most house insurance companies offer to extend your contents insurance policy to make it valid wherever you are in the world.

Additionally, depending on the house and the insurance company, some high value policies may also include extra add-ons, such as cover for outdoor items including statues and ornaments.

Is There a Difference between Companies?

Because some people who purchase high value house insurance may lead a more lavish lifestyle than others, some insurance companies pride themselves on the extra levels of customer service they can offer. These types of policies are typically made to suit the individual customer’s needs and take into account the amount of protection they desire, their lifestyle and other personal requirements as they arise.

Other Considerations

While some people buy house insurance cover for their high value houses as a primary residence, some companies offer you the option to purchase cover for a second house, such as one you would go to on holiday. This location may be a buy-to-let property, a weekend apartment, a city residence or a pied- à-terre. No matter what the use of your second house, it’s important that you research the insurance company’s policy and additional cover options should you need cover for an additional high value residence.

Whether you have expensive paintings and watches or treasured antiques and jewellery collections, there are a number of providers that offer house insurance cover for high value houses. However, it is vital that you do thorough research before choosing an insurance company; you are essentially laying the protection of your valuables in the insurer’s hands. You need to thoroughly understand the policy before you purchase it and make sure that each and every one of your possessions will be compensated for or replaced, if possible, should damage occur.

Copyright Doreen Waverley highvaluehouseinsurance.org.uk 2011