What is Buildings Insurance?

Home Buildings Insurance is designed to cover you for damage to the structure of your home. This would include walls,floors,roof,windows etc.

Do i need Buildings Insurance?

If you have a mortgage yes you will require building insurance and even if you don't it should be a priority in case the worst happens.Buildings Insurance will normally cover you for fire,earthquakes (yes they do happen in UK) damage,aircraft damage,trees,explosions etc. The buildings insurance you choose should cover the financial costs of rebuilding and this cost should also cover the costs in the worst case scenario of flattening the property and clearing the site.

Which should i choose?

As with all insurance you should get more than one quote and read the small print too make sure that they are offering the same cover like most will give some cover for the cost of alternative accomodation although not all and also check on the exclusions as some buildings insurance cover might include more exclusions.

What can i do to reduce the cost of building insurance?

The first thing to do is consider the excess you are prepared to pay as the higher the excess the lower the premiums should be. Next if you have it, look to see if you can get a discount by utilising any no claims bonus you have accrued and finally shop around as the prices do vary quite substantially. One final thought and i have personal experience of this is make sure you do a price check each time your insurance is up for renewal as for two years i never got round to it only to find in year 3 when i did do a comparison that i was able to reduce my buildings insurance by a massive 30%. Another way that should bring the costs down is to combine your buildings insurance with your home contents insurance as many insurance companies give further discounts if you do this.