THE THINGS WE OWN mean a lot to us, after all we’ve worked hard over the years to acquire them or been fortunate enough to inherit them. They may also have a high value in monetary terms and replacing them could be costly.
Have you ever wondered how you’d cope if you lost your valuables to fire, theft or damage from flooding? That’s what contents insurance is for, to provide financial protection if those things happen. It can cover the costs of repairing or replacing them if something goes wrong.
POSSESSIONS AT RISK
Contents insurance policies typically cover the items in your home for loss, theft and damage, including items inside your home, in outbuildings and in the garden.
But, worryingly, homeowners and renters across the country could be undervaluing their contents insurance by as much as £115 billion, despite a third believing their possessions are at risk, research reveals.
CONTENTS UNDERVALUED
When asked to estimate the value of all contents in their home, the average figure from those polled came out at between £18,333 to £16,667 less than the average contents value of £35,000 [1].
Across the UK that works out at a total of £115 billion [2] worth of contents that could be undervalued. While two-thirds of respondents (67%) typically update their contents insurance on an annual basis, just under a quarter (23%) said they didn’t think it was necessary to increase their insurance level regularly, for example, when they buy a high value item such as jewellery or home technology.
ACTUAL VALUE
Contents are defined as everything from a wardrobe of clothes, to pots and pans, to any gadgets owned. Anything not fixed down in the home is covered by contents insurance. This large disparity between the perceived contents value and actual value becomes even more alarming as more than a third (36%) revealed their contents were at risk in some way, whether from burglary or flooding.
Top five most valuable items by average estimate
- Tech: computers and games consoles £600
- Clothes £580
- Tech: radios and TVs £568
- Beds and bedding £559
- Tech: phones and tablets £508
UNDERVALUED CONTENTS
When it comes to property types, people living in a rented, shared flat are the least likely to have insurance; more than half (58%) of flat renters said their contents weren’t covered at all.
They also undervalued their contents by the most at £7,717, almost £30,000 under the national average – despite the fact that they’re the most likely to feel their contents are especially at risk of theft or damage (58%). It’s important homeowners or renters provide an accurate estimate for their contents, otherwise they could end up without enough cover if they need to make a claim.
HIGH VALUE ITEMS
The value of most items can be searched on the internet, but antiques or jewellery should be valued by a professional before being added to your policy.
Seven out of ten people said they feel attached to the items in their house, so getting the right level of cover is especially important if you think your contents are at risk in any way. While some people update their cover annually, some forget to amend their policy when they buy or receive high value items (worth over £1,000) – think Christmas, birthdays and anniversaries.
The research reveals a quarter (25%) wouldn’t inform their insurer and add them to their policy, with a further 51% not planning to do this at all.
[1] Based on data from Admiral Insurance survey carried out by Atomik Research on 1,000 UK adults and ABI data – https:// www.abi.org.uk/news/newsarticles/2018/02/britain-uncoveredthe-average-ukhousehold-now-owns35000-worth-of-stuff/ [2] Based on 29 million residential properties – https://www.theccc.org. uk/wpcontent/uploads/2019/02/ UK-housing-Fit-for-the-futureCCC-2019.pdf
