Home Insurance: Cutting Your Costs

If you want to pay less for your home insurance, as a minimum your mortgage provider will still require you to have buildings insurance to cover the cost of repairing or rebuilding your home. It is up to you to decide whether to also purchase contents insurance to cover the things in your home, although it could be an expensive gamble if something were to go wrong and you had no insurance.

However, there are a few easy things you can do to reduce your premium that that will not leave you unprotected and that cost little or are free. Firstly, shop around for your home insurance. With so many companies offering so many different deals, you may find big savings or a more appropriate level of cover at a cheaper price.

There are lots of price comparison websites, and most will help you understand the different levels of cover as well as just quoting prices. It is important that the policy you have meets your needs so do look at the details.

Purchasing your contents and buildings insurance from one company will often get you a cheaper deal. Some insurance companies offer more discounts if you also buy your car and life insurance from them as well as your home insurance.

You can increase the voluntary excess on your policy to reduce the premium, but be realistic about what you would be able to pay. Remember the whole reason for having home insurance is to protect you financially if your house or belongings are damaged, so there is no point in getting a really cheap policy that would still leave you financially crippled if there was a house fire for example.

By fitting an approved burglar alarm and getting proper locks you can further reduce your premium. This will also of course reduce the chances of a burglary which is not just expensive but can be very traumatic.

Look for deals where you can pay annually in a lump sum rather than monthly instalments, there is often a discount. Finally, try and join a Neighbourhood Watch scheme, this costs nothing and can make your home insurance cheaper.

In your attempts to reduce your premium, dont be tempted to lie to your insurer about the condition of your home because otherwise the insurer may not pay out.