A gem of an insurance policy

When you think of home insurance, what comes to mind? Perhaps you think it's just in case of a fire, or to cover those DIY disasters? Well, while it's always good to be insured for those things, there's much more to home insurance than simply safeguarding against damage to your property.

There are two main types of home insurance available. The first, buildings cover, will insure against any structural damage or destruction of your doors, windows, carpets and such. The second type, contents insurance, is perhaps the one people think less about.

Contents insurance is simply that; it insures the contents of the property. Whether it be your white goods; cooker, freezer etc, or your electrical items such as your PC or TV, contents insurance can provide you with reassurance that they can be replaced should something happen to them.

But that's not all. One thing that tends to be forgotten even when people have contents insurance is their jewellery. Recent studies in the UK have shown that the average household has almost £2,000 worth of jewellery which is not insured against theft. What's more; of the 5 million people in the UK who have jewellery worth over £5,000, 35% of these are unaware of the fact due to never having had their collection valued.

Getting your jewellery valued is quite simple; take your pieces along to a jewellers or an independent valuation service and they will assess them for you. If you already have contents insurance, inform your insurer of the value and ask if they could add it to your policy. If you have subsequent valuations and the value changes, you'll need to keep your insurer up to date so they can adjust your premiums accordingly.

Home insurance is a luxury few can afford to be without. Cheap home insurance can be found by searching and comparing policies online. In the event of a fire or burglary, house insurance save you money and stress from trying to replace everything.