What’s covered by home emergency insurance? What’s not? And do you need it if you already have buildings cover? Read on for the answers.
Home emergency insurance protects you against unexpected events. That’s things like a blocked drain, a burst pipe or your boiler breaking down.
If you have a household emergency your insurer will send an expert round to fix it. So you won’t have to search for an electrician or a heating engineer, for example. It’s all taken care of – and paid for – by your insurance company.
You can tailor your home emergency cover policy to meet the needs of your home, and your budget.
Here are just some of the things you can protect against:
Some policies also cover alternative accommodation if you can’t stay in your home.
Limits on what your cover will pay for is listed on your policy.
Exclusions on what your cover will pay for is listed on your policy.
Check your policy carefully before you buy. Because what you think is ‘an emergency’ might not be covered.
A total loss of heating or hot water is an emergency. Low water pressure or boiler control issues aren’t. And you might find general maintenance isn’t covered either.
Your policy should say how quickly your insurance company will respond to an emergency. Most have a 24-hour helpline.
But this doesn’t mean they’ll always send a technician in the middle of the night. You might need to wait till the next day.
A boiler breakdown isn’t covered by all emergency home cover policies. So check carefully before you buy.
Your boiler could also be excluded if it hasn’t been regularly serviced by a Gas Safe registered engineer. Or if it’s over a certain age.
To keep your boiler in tip top condition, take a look at our Boiler Guides. You’ll find great advice on how to improve your boiler’s efficiency and when it’s boiler replacement time.
Your buildings insurance is there to cover the cost of things like flood, fire or storm damage. But it won’t usually pay for someone to fix your boiler or sort out a power failure.
Some more expensive home insurance policies do include home emergency cover. So it’s worth checking to make sure you’re not paying for the same service twice.
With home emergency insurance, you don’t have to ring round trying to find a plumber or a heating engineer. It’s all taken care of for you – and the response time is guaranteed by your policy.
In summer, it’s easy to wonder whether you really need home emergency cover. But you’d probably feel differently in winter after several days spent shivering in a cold home. And you might struggle to find a heating engineer who’s reliable, affordable – and available.
So it’s worth thinking about what impact a boiler breakdown, burst water pipe or electrical failure would have on your household.
If you’re pretty handy – or you know someone who is – you might decide to deal with any issues as they occur. But if spanners frighten you, it’s probably time to look at your home emergency insurance options.
Home emergency cover varies from policy to policy – and so does the cost. So make sure you choose a company with a solid reputation for reliability and service. It’s no good getting a ‘great deal’ and then finding that you’re not actually covered when it matters.
Remember, there are some jobs where it’s vital to use a Gas Safe registered engineer – like fixing a broken boiler. If you try it yourself and get it wrong, you could cause a carbon monoxide leak. So it might be worth looking at boiler-only home emergency insurance. Especially if your boiler’s not under warranty anymore.
Most home emergency insurance providers have a 24/7 emergency telephone helpline. And many offer online and app options too. Get in touch the minute you notice a problem and they’ll guide you through the process.
Doing maintenance and repairs can feel like a full-time job if you’re a landlord. If you’ve got lots of rental properties you’ll probably have a team of qualified people working with you to handle emergencies.
But if you only have one or two buy-to-let investments, home emergency insurance might be worth checking out.
You shouldn’t have to pay more for emergency home insurance on a rental property than you do on your own home. So make sure you’re not being charged an extra fee for the same kind of cover.
As a landlord, you have extra legal obligations. Like a Gas Safety Certificate for every gas appliance in your rental properties – every year.
If you’re starting out as a landlord, or even if you already have a large property portfolio, take a look at our advice for landlords.