Home insurance experts are reminding Christmas shoppers to make sure any high value presents are covered by their home contents insurance.
Sadly, this time of year is peak season for burglars, with 20,430 burglaries taking place across England and Wales in December 2022, according to UKCrimeStats. With that in mind, it’s important to check that your new purchases are covered, even before they’re unwrapped.
Angela Pilley, Home Insurance Expert at Defaqto, said: “An important area to consider is the value of each gift and whether it is considered as a ‘high risk’ or ‘valuable’ item. This can vary from one insurer to another and can include things other than jewellery, watches or pieces of art. Some insurers list televisions, computers, audio and video entertainment equipment or photographic equipment as ‘high risk’ and limit the amount they will pay per item.”
Data from Defaqto, one of the UK’s most trusted sources of financial product and market intelligence, highlights the policy details that homeowners need to be aware of to avoid finding themselves at financial risk.
The data shows that limits for an individual high risk or valuable item can vary from £500 to £15,000. The most common limit, across 29% of home contents products, is £2,000. Some policies specify a limit as a percentage of the contents sum insured. These range from 5% to 20%.
Angela Pilley said: “If an item exceeds the limit specified then you need to contact your insurer and arrange for it to be added as a ‘specified item’ for it to be covered.
“It is essential to check the overall policy limits for all ‘high risk’ or ‘valuable’ items as insurers not only apply a limit for each item but many also have a maximum limit for all items that are owned.
“In fact, 90% of policies apply an overall limit for the total of the high risk or valuable items within your contents sum insured. The way in which these limits apply can vary, so this is not always straightforward or easy to understand.”
The good news is that 82% of home insurance policies increase your contents cover for Christmas.
Angela Pilley said: “When policies include a ‘seasonal increase’ or ‘special events cover’, they usually either raise your sum insured by a specific monetary amount or base the increase on a percentage of your overall contents sum insured. Monetary amounts can vary from £1,000 to £10,000. Policies that apply a percentage increase to the overall contents sum insured, generally add between 10% and 20% of the sum insured. The specific events and the level of increase that can be applied vary widely from policy to policy and so ensuring you are aware of what your policy offers is important.”
Top tips on how to make sure your presents are covered:
Take time to consider your ‘overall’ contents sum insured to make sure any new purchases are not going to take your contents value above the limit of cover.
Check the individual limits of your policy to ensure that they are sufficient to cover any high value items.
If an item exceeds the individual limit, contact your insurer straight away and don’t leave it until after Christmas just in case anything happens.
Check that you have cover for things such as pedal cycles.
If you want to cover the item away from the home, check that you have the right cover in place.
Try to keep a rough list of the gifts you have purchased or keep receipts, so you are aware of the extra items in your home.
For high risk or valuable items, take a photograph of the item and the purchase receipt.
Check whether your policy includes a seasonal increase for December/Christmas.
Ensure you are aware of any time limitations which may be applicable. For example, some insurers will specify for how long the increase is applicable (usually 1 month before the event and 1 month afterwards).
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