Contents insurance is a popular form of insurance that calculates the total cost of all your important and vital possessions. At first glance, contents insurance appears easy to dissect and calculate. However that is a little nave to think, as contents insurance has several “grey areas.” Ask all these questions before calculating a number.
For example, if your kitchen caught on fire and completely destroyed the room, what would happen next? Well, the policy holder would have to fill out two separate claims. The first claim would represent the kitchen units and any other built-in appliances. On the second claim you would list off appliances like a refrigerator or dishwasher. You might be surprised by that fact, but those two appliances are not considered an integral part of the kitchen and can be moved.
Fires, floods, and theft represent the three primary reasons for why household goods are damaged. Also worth mentioning are trees falling on your house or vehicles colliding into your wall. Make sure you check with the insurance company to find out exactly what disasters they do and do not cover.
Where is your property located? Do you own or have active security systems? Has your residence been unattended for an extended period of time? Does the property have a history of claims? All these questions and others you must ask yourself. If you do not know, find out! It’s essential that you take these into regard when gaining contents insurance coverage.
Another area many insurance companies can quickly skip over is whether your prized possessions are covered for replacement value or current market value. You want to have replacement value if you really have key household items that you hold dear to your heart. Yes the premium is much higher, but the coverage you receive in case of damages is much higher.
Most people will not have to worry about a ton of replacement value since you likely do not own a lot of jewelry or antiques. However, current market value is a good way to rip you off. Insurance agents will assess the value of the stolen or lost goods based on current value and not what it was worth back in the day.
It’s a simple formula. Pay a higher premium and your goods are covered much better than if you pay a low or very cheap premium. If you really want strong protection, you must pay a lot even if the chances of destruction or theft are very low.
Contents insurance does not need to be outrageous because you and your house probably aren’t made of gold. Keep in mind that an average household makes $200,000 a year and spends 3% of that total income towards insurance. Spend your money wisely towards insurance and the coverage will stay as strong as more expensive policies.
Graham McKenzie is the content Syndication Manager at insurance123.co.zaSouth Africa’s leading Household Insurance information portal
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