3rd July 2017

Getting your numbers wrong when working out how much home insurance cover you need could prove to be a costly mistake that could have serious consequences. If you don’t check your home contents sum insured on a regular basis, then you could find that if you need to make a claim you are underinsured. If you’ve had the same level of cover in place for a few years, then it may no longer reflect the up-to-date value of all your possessions.

If you don’t have the right level of cover in place and you need to make a claim, you could find that your insurance company reduces the value of your claim substantially, even if your claim is for less than the total amount of your sum insured.

If for example, you have possessions worth £50,000 but only insure them for £25,000, and you make a claim for £10,000, your insurer may reduce the amount they pay out to £5,000 because you are underinsured.

So, make sure you check the value of your home contents when renewing your policy.