Owning a home is the most beautiful dream for a person, a space of memories and into their life. But have you ever thought about the invisible barrier guarding your possessions in addition to the pleasure of having four walls and a roof?
A home is where you grow up wanting to leave and grow old wanting to come back. And owning one is a dream for many of us. Though this is a task most know how to go about in terms of buying and owning a home, most of us don’t know how to guard against unfortunate incidents. That is where the role of Home Insurance is substantial. At https://marketvein.com/ get complete details about the home insurance.
Let’s start with the basics!
If you want to purchase home insurance, this article will provide information that enables to make informed decisions about the policy.
| In India, only about 1% of people have home insurance, which means that only 3% of homes are insured. This is in contrast to countries like the US, UK, France, Australia, and China, where home insurance penetration is between 90–97%. |
A Brief on Home Insurance
Home insurance is a form of property insurance that protects home and your collaterals against any sort of loss or damage caused by various unforeseen circumstances. It may also provide liability insurance for any sort of accident happening within the home.
- Can protect the damage to the structural features of the house, electric lines, water pipes, and much more. It may also shield belongings from any potential theft and vandalism, or any other man-made mishaps.
- May provide coverage for losses or damage to valuable items such as jewelry, artwork, and collectibles.
- Restores life after loss by providing financial support to walk back into your life.
- Companies help you with the different legal responsibilities and procedures associated with property damage.
| 7Cause of Property Loss | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
| Wind and hail | 48.0% | 39.5% | 38.3% | 47.8% | 39.4% |
| Fire and lightning | 26.2% | 26.0% | 21.5% | 21.9% | 24.8% |
| Water damage and freezing | 18.0% | 24.5% | 29.0% | 19.9% | 23.5% |
| Theft | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 0.6% | 0.7% |
| All other property damage | 4.6% | 6.5% | 7.1% | 7.4% | 9.4% |
What Are Different Types of Home Insurance?
Fire Insurance is the most popular home insurance policy purchased in India. Still, the Indian home insurance market has much more to offer than other policies with greater home insurance benefits.
Structural Cover:
This is the most common type of insurance policy. The policies will cover the home structure in case it is badly damaged. Generally, the policy will usually cover costs that might have to be incurred in reconstructing or repairing the part damaged.
Content Cover on Homes:
Home Content Cover As the name itself suggests, a form of cover is needed for contents in your house. In most cases, it deals with furniture, movable & immovable electronic items, and jewelry.
Fire Cover:
Other policies are distinguished by ‘what is covered by the policy.’ Fire Cover protects against one common cause of damage – fire. Some events like unpredictable natural calamities and accidents fall under the fire insurance policy. You can insure the home, its contents, or both.
Public Liability Cover:
When the damages are unexpected because of any cause within the house or in the surroundings of your legally owned area, a public liability cover will compensate for a major portion of the hence-due expenses.
Theft Cover:
This form of home insurance provides damages you might have suffered because of theft. It compensates you for the stolen goods and valuables, as far as they are covered under the policy and your insurer can ascertain their value.
Landlord’s Cover:
This is ideally a cover meant for landlords. It gives cover to the building’s structure and contents, even if you are not living in it. It can take away a major source of headache since you can never be entirely sure how valuables and buildings are handled.
Tenant’s Cover:
It covers only the contents since tenants don’t own the building’s structure. However, as a tenant, you should look forward to renting an apartment or a house covered by the landlord’s insurance.
Also Read: Does the Term Insurance plan cover natural death?
What are the Steps to Apply For Home Insurance?
Some of the key aspects you should consider while purchasing a home insurance policy as well as features of this plan are presented here.
- Assess the value of the house and homely possessions
- Compare the premiums of various home insurance plans
- Look at policy inclusions and exclusions
- Determine the term for the plan
- Purchase of the chosen plan
Also Read: Best Spouse Term Insurance Plans in India
Essential Tips Before Choosing the Right Home Insurance Policy
The following are critical steps that will guide you in choosing a proper home insurance policy:
- Set the amount of cover you want to put on your home. This ranges from the size of the house, the location or place of the home, and how much the property is worth.
- Know the different types of home insurance. The best ones include personal property coverage, liability protection, and additional living expenses coverage.
- Do not take the first home insurance you find. Comparing insurers to get quotations might be necessary to identify which coverages you receive in your premiums.
- Understand the exclusions and limitations in each of the home insurance covers you are considering.
- Decide on the premium are willing to pay and what it would cost in your budget.
- You can even consult an agent of insurance. Insurance agents can give advice based on the exact situation and guide you in making a better decision.
Also Read: Best 5 Term Insurance Plans for 70 year old in India
How to Claim for Home Insurance?
You can file an insurance claim by following the following steps,
- Call up your insurer: You inform the insurer about the claim.
- Complete a claim form: Use the claim form provided by your insurance firm to inform on the nature of your claim. You can submit an online or in-office claim form using the insurer’s office.
- Attach relevant documents: Add relevant documents with the claim form. For instance, if you are submitting a car accident claim, you might need to attach the driving license and the registration certificate for the mentioned vehicle.
- Wait for a surveyor: The surveyor will inspect the damage.
- Claim Approved Receive: Upon being approved for your claim, you receive the claim amount.
Home Insurance Vs. Home Loan Insurance
Home insurance or homeowner’s insurance is the shield and assurance needed to ensure your haven against threats from fire accidents, burglary, vandalism, or any kind of calamities like floods, earthquakes, or tsunamis. However, home loan insurance safeguards the home loan availed in purchasing the home from liabilities.
The Insurance provider will also recover the loan amount if the buyer dies or is incapable of repaying the loan for any reason. In this context, it is ideal to note that your house insurance does not cover you when the home is repossessed because you failed to make payments on the home loan. So, it is advisable to have home insurance and home loan insurance to protect you from any liability, especially if you have an unstable source of income.
FAQs About Home Insurance
Q1. Why home insurance is important?
The main reason behind taking a home insurance policy is to value the property and its contents. If the home and contents are underinsured, the company doesn’t pay the full proceeds.
Q2. How many types of property insurance are there?
- Renter’s property insurance
- Commercial property insurance
- Home Insurance
- Fire insurance for property
- Public liability insurance
Q3. What is the cost of home insurance in India?
The cost of a home insurance company is between Rs. 2000 to Rs. 5000 depending upon the risks covered. It covers the value of the house, but it doesn’t cover the value of the land.
Q4. What documents are required for home insurance?
Documents Required for Home Insurance Claims:
- Pictures of the damaged property.
- Invoices of owned belongings, rent agreement (if a tenant)
- Insurance copy (Optional)
- FIR/Panchnama/Bail paper/Charge sheet.
- Report for brigade in case of fire
- Claim Form duly filled and signed.