It is common that, when hiring a home insurance, many doubts arise. Is it mandatory? What should it cover? Who should take charge in the case of a rental property? How can we make sure what we hire and avoid unpleasant surprises?
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Home insurance is not mandatory
Home insurance, by itself, is not mandatory. But it may be a requirement of the mortgage or the rental agreement. Financial institutions that have granted the mortgage may require us to have mandatory insurance, generally fire insurance and sometimes more complete ones. In other cases, the consumer is “forced” to also take out home insurance because it means a reduction in their mortgage payment.
In the case of a rental home, it is also not mandatory. However, some owners may require tenants to hire them. A rental agreement is a private agreement between the parties, which can stipulate any type of clause that is not contrary to the law, to the law of urban leases.
Read well before hiring
Despite not being mandatory, there are many people who choose to take out home insurance as protection against certain accidents. But do we know what they really cover?
Before hiring home insurance, it is advisable to read each and every one of the conditions of the policy and ask everything that is not clear, to avoid unpleasant surprises. We must be clear about what the insurance will cover and what not, and assess whether our activity, type of housing and specific circumstances is worth hiring or not.
Keep in mind that there are several types of policies: continent, content, damage to third parties, and so on. The clauses can simply refer to the value of the property, or also include furniture, appliances and electronic devices, jewellery or other objects, for the amounts chosen.
Some insurances also offer repair services, with a number of annual hours of professionals to make small arrangements at home. The conditions may vary if it is a first residence or a holiday home, if it is of habitual use or if it is rented. It is also possible to make sure what the neighbourhood insurance, that of the building, already covers, to avoid duplicating coverage.
We must review both the general and the particular conditions that have applied to our specific case. It can happen that we have a break in a tap that causes a flood on the floor below and discover that the insurance covers the broken tap but not damages to third parties. These aspects must be clear before deciding to invest in an annual policy.
The most frequent problems
We have detected what are usually the most common misunderstandings in home insurance. One of them are franchises. For example, insurance may cover damage to household furniture, but perhaps only up to a specific amount or, conversely, from a certain amount. It is one of the issues that can lead to more controversy. Another problem is the internal scales that some companies apply when calculating compensation. Maybe we think that if we break our television the insurance company will answer for the entire price and actually only offers a percentage.
Convoluted language
Understanding a policy is not always easy. We have observed that, often, the language of the policies is not clear enough. It is a contract with consumers and, as such, should be written so that anyone, regardless of their cultural level or training could understand what they are signing, but it is not.
In addition, it is a fairly aggressive commercial sector, and sometimes commercial information is incorrect or incomplete. We insist that the entire policy should be read, not rely on the advertising summary. When in doubt, the recommendation is always to ask before hiring.
Is it worth hiring home insurance?
Are you one of those who do not buy a home insurance because you are convinced that it will never be flooded, a hurricane will not take it or an earthquake will knock it out and that the thieves will not approach it either?
Hiring insurance for your home protects you even from the misdeeds your dog makes. If, for example, your pet does not like your visit and bites it, a policy with wide coverage pays the medical expenses you make for attending to the bite. Or if your household employee gets hurt working, the costs of medical care are also borne by insurance.
Securing the house is not limited to the building. Insurance must include coverage that protects its contents (furniture, electronic devices, etc.). Protect your home from natural phenomena. Will you buy your first home? This is what you have to know. Satisfied with your bank, insurer or Afore? Enter the text here According to Mapfre, you can claim objects contained in your home through photographs and with the marks of dust or moisture that leave the devices on the walls, including remains, you can also present the invoices or controls of your devices as proof of these.
Documenting your belongings will help when claiming damage with the insurer
It is important to inform the insurer of what material your home is made, the levels or floors it has, the use that is given to it and thus avoid that for any omitted detail the compensation is not paid.
It is also important to have civil liability coverage in case any family member, domestic employee or pet has a personal incident or damages third-party property, and in case of house breakdowns that result in damages to others.
For example, if you are in a low seismic zone you can do without contracting payments for damage caused by earthquakes, but in areas with high flood risk it is important to check that the policy covers electronic equipment, personal items and cash.
In order to take out insurance, it is important to analyse what risks (flood, tremors) the property is subject to in order to define the required coverage.
For this, you do not necessarily require the invoices of what you have at home, you make an assessment of the furniture and appliances of the home and based on it you ask the insurer to quote you the insurance.
It is important to check that the policy has the assistance package that covers urgent repairs and plumbing, locksmith, electricity and legal and educational assistance.
Australian Construction & Development Services is a business with over 30 years of experience in the field of construction, repairs, building maintenance and insurance.