Home Insurance - Outbuildings

[transatlantic]

Just looking into changing my home insurance. I've noticed that most companies have a standard contents insurance of around £50,000 - which includes the contents of outbuildings (sheds and garages). But then they all seem to have a maximum theft limit of £2500 from outbuildings?

What is up with that? I assume it's because theft is more likley than some other accident in outbuildings?

 

[Brandlin]

Basic rule of insurance cover - If you want more covered, pay bigger premiums.

Standard insurance policies recognise that most people don't have thousands of pounds of goods in a "shed". So to ensure they don't get stung in a payout, AND to keep their premiums down and look competitive they limit the payout.

So, yes, theft is more likely from those places, but it also doesn't apply to most people, so why would theyoffer more expensive, higher risk cover as part of a standard product that most dont need?

 

[Geoff_S]

Brandlin summed it up I think. And the clue is in the phrase "standard insurance". 1000's of pounds of tools in a workshop is not standard.

 

[transatlantic]

I guess I was surprised to see it so low, but as you say, the average home isn't going to have more than £2000 worth of stuff in their garage.

Turns out that my current provider doesn't allow you to increase it either, and all the ones I have phoned are also £2500 tops too. I guess I'll have to look into a specific outbuildings insurance.

What do you lot do? I assume alot of you must have more than £2000 worth in your garages and sheds?

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I had a nice 20' x 18' double garage built about 15 years ago, cavity wall, pit, pitched roof, double glazing, 25 double sockets, hifi, TV, pot belly, beer fridge, the lot (how I miss it) and swmbo decided insurance for my gear would be a good idea. I started to itemise stuff with its replacement costs and when it got to over £1,600 for hand planes alone decided to give insurance a miss. I did have top notch locks, though, and no windows on the road side.

 

[Ring]

Im with John Lewis my garage is covered for £5000 for my tools and bikes etc had been with the prudential insurance for 30 years but the price was just getting ridiculous,So I went on a comparison web site looked at reviews phoned John Lewis got to speak to a great lady talked me through the whole lot ended up with far better cover for my house and garage and saved over £140 a year with them .Hope that helps Jim

 

[Matt@]

get a quote from NFU. I use them and they insure house, home workshop and even customer goods if in my home and not much of an inquisition when I did the proposal routine....

 

[Geoff_S]

Jim is right. John Lewis seem to have their act together.

 

[transatlantic]

John lewis is the most expensive of the ones I have seen so far. But I am happy to pay a little bit more for customer service. I was thinking of going with churchill as they have their premium option which also gives a limit of £5k for theft of contents from outbuildings.