What is covered in homeowner's home insurance policy?

Living in Ireland, you can have multiple types of relationships with a property. While that sounds weird, it's true!

As an adult, you may be living on rent, you may have a second home, you may be travelling a lot and have an unoccupied home, or you may be the owner of a home.

With owning a home, comes a lot of responsibility. And a majority of this responsibility is financial. This is why, as a homeowner in Ireland, it is very important for you to get a home insurance policy that protects your home and your belongings.

There are primarily 5 types of home insurance:

1. Home contents insurance
2. Building insurance
3. Buildings and contents insurance
4. Holiday home insurance
5. Unoccupied home insurance

What is a homeowners insurance policy and how does it work?

Homeowners insurance also called home insurance policy is a combined package insurance that protects your home and belongings against risks such as theft, fire, flood, water damage or subsidence.

Since this covers both you and your mortgage lender, your lender will want proof that you have homeowners insurance, before they give you a loan.

Once you've decided on the level of coverage you need for your home, you can get a policy that fits the criteria.

Then, if the unexpected happens, you can file a claim with your insurance company. The company will send an adjuster to estimate how much it will cost to repair the damage.

Other than this, you will also have to let your lender know about the claim and pay your home insurance deductible, which is the amount you pay out of pocket before your insurance company pays on the claim.

You may receive payment for covered losses or damage based on your policy's limit, including personal belongings inside your home.

What does homeowners insurance provide coverage for?

A home insurance policy typically protects the structure of your home and its contents from damage. It covers:

• Your personal belongings, such as furniture, appliances, clothing, and electronics.
• Legal fees or settlement costs if you accidentally cause damage to someone else's property.
• A mortgage on your home, to show the lenders that you're protected.
• The structure of your home, including garages or sheds.

You can choose to get a combined package of buildings and contents insurance or you can get a single coverage policy like only buildings insurance or only contents insurance.

Now, if you use your home for a different purpose or don't stay at home for more than a period of 60 days, you might have to consider changing the kind of policy you opt for. In this case, based on how you use your property, you can consider a holiday home insurance policy or an unoccupied home insurance policy.

Optional covers to get with your home insurance policy

Optional covers or add-ons are single policies you can add to your package to extend the coverage, based on your needs. With your homeowner's insurance policy, you can opt for:

• Accidental damage
• Family legal expenses
• Family Personal Accident

There are several other kinds of add-ons to consider when buying a home insurance policy in Ireland.

Add-ons provide an extra layer of security in safeguarding your home and it's content, and thus also become a key factor in deciding the premium of your home insurance policy.

It's also valuable to check out a few tips to get cheaper home insurance without compromising on your coverage.