Why Is It Worth Insuring Your Home And How To Get Insurance Correctly
How home insurance works
This type of insurance comes in handy when you own a property and want to protect yourself in case something happens to the property. Fire, gas explosion, robbery, natural disaster, neighbors forgot to turn off the faucet in the bathroom – in all these situations, you risk incurring serious losses and even completely losing your house or apartment. Insurance helps to compensate for losses in part or in full.
To do this, you conclude an agreement with an insurance company, which will specify:
- what exactly do you insure;
- what cases will be considered insured;
- How much do you want to insure your home?
After that, you regularly pay dues. If an insured event does occur, the company evaluates the damage and pays you the amount stipulated by the contract. That is, everything works in much the same way as with any other insurance. It is interesting to note that today it is possible to ensure not only property but even casino bets – so you can safely play casino online at HellSpin.
What can be insured in an apartment or house
Everything: from housing as a whole to decoration, furniture, and other interior items. Typically, insurance companies offer the following options for insurance objects:
- structural elements – floor and ceiling, walls and partitions, balconies and loggias;
- engineering equipment – pipes, meters, wiring, and other communications;
- interior decoration – floor and ceiling coverings, wallpaper, paint or decorative plaster, windows, doors, and any parts of the decor;
- movable property – appliances, furniture, valuable personal items;
- the right to property – such insurance is called title insurance and helps to reduce losses if you encounter scammers when buying a home.
It is important to remember that home insurance does not cover all movable property. You should not expect that you will be compensated for the cost of all your clothes, jewelry, children’s toys, and grandmother’s service for 12 people. You can insure some of the things dear to your heart, but everything will depend on the insurance company.
What can you insure your home against?
Insurance company data shows that residential real estate in Russia suffers mainly from such troubles:
- natural disasters;
- fires;
- accidents in heating, water supply, or sewerage systems;
- robberies, burglaries, and other acts of intruders.
Therefore, first of all, it is worth insuring a house or apartment against these risks. But this is, of course, not a complete list. Insurance companies offer a few more options:
- gas explosion;
- structural defects;
- man-made accidents;
- animal actions;
- the fall of aircraft and their parts;
- lightning strike.
In addition, it is possible to ensure your civil liability. Such insurance helps to compensate for damage if someone else’s property was damaged through your fault, for example, you flooded your neighbors.
Also, the insurance company can cover the costs of temporary accommodation and storage of things, cleaning the territory, processing, and paying for documents and certificates that are needed to restore housing.
Each insurer offers a choice of its own list of risks or package options that include everything at once.
How to get insurance
1. Choose a reliable insurance company
It is important that the insurer has a license – it can be checked on the official website. You should also pay attention to tariffs and other conditions. For example, for the company to indicate in the contract all the insurance risks that are important to you.
2. Read the terms of the contract carefully
You need to understand that the main goal of the insurance company is to make money and not save you from ruin. Therefore, the information on the beautiful websites of insurers and insurance cost calculators may differ slightly from reality and smooth out not very convenient conditions. It is important to clarify for yourself as accurately as possible:
- what exactly the company considers an insured event;
- when she can refuse to pay you;
- how is the procedure for assessing and compensating for damages;
- what documents will be required when an insured event occurs;
- what is the exact amount of insurance premiums?
For example, you want the company to pay you back in the event of a flood. But if you carefully read the contract, it may turn out that only the situation when you were flooded by neighbors will be considered an insured event, and a pipe break or flood is no longer there. The story is the same with fires: some companies do not pay damages if the fire happened due to wiring defects or broken electrical appliances.
3. Assess the value of the property
You choose how much to insure the home and what is in it. This is what the insurance company will pay you if something happens. But the cost of your insurance directly depends on the same amount.
4. Read reviews
Sometimes insurance companies happily enter into contracts and accept money from customers, but they themselves are in no hurry with payments. They drag out the process, force them to collect paperwork, and stand in queues during working hours, and when assessing, they significantly underestimate the amount of damage.
It is difficult to foresee such a development of events during the conclusion of the contract, all this is not a violation of the law, and it will be more expensive to challenge the decision of the insurance company. So you should turn to someone else’s experience and find out in advance what its customers write about the company.
5. Bring all the necessary documents and sign the contract
Usually, a passport and a document confirming the ownership of housing will be enough for you. Some insurance companies may ask for additional documents.
Remember that property insurance is, first of all, your safety and a guarantee of compensation for damage in the event of an accident.