How to choose best home insurance the smart way
If you are reading this article you probably do not need convincing that Home Insurance is a necessity. With homes being so expensive and hard to come by you need to do your best at protecting yours. However as with most things there is a smart and foolish way of doing things.
This article will give you some steps towards smart home insurance, read our other blogs on home insurance for more tips on finding your home insurance balance the smart way.
Try deductibles they are great to reduce you home insurance premiums.
Deductibles are a feature insurance companies introduced to share the risk of accidents with customers. The idea is that customers agree to pay for the first $xxx in an insurance claim. Lets illustrate: say you have your windows insured and your adorable son breaks one with his new baseball. You can claim your house insurance and get it fixed. Every little claim drains the home insurance company’s resources and is a huge pain in the rear. These small claims are often not worth it for us, the customers. Just in filling the forms, calling the insurance company, taking a morning off to receive the adjuster and workers… With a deductible of say $300 you pay for the first $300 dollars of every claim so it won’t be worth your trouble to claim for small stuff. This will reduce your insurance premiums significantly.
Improve your credit score. This is not just a good idea for loans and mortgages, home insurances look at your credit rating to assess if you are a high risk customer or not. Prove to them you are a desirable customer with a low credit rating and see the premiums drop.
Shop around. Don’t stick with your grandparents home insurance just because you are emotionally linked to them, they aren’t. Shop around like you shop for home loans, clothes or cars. Home insurance is expensive you need to get the best deal you can. Even if you are happy with your current home insurance shop around every year to see if you can improve your policy. If you find a better home insurance policy tell your company and they will likely match it or improve it.
Stop smoking. Not only will you live longer you will have more money to spend and enjoy the extra years you get. The highest cause of fire (one of the biggest expenditures for insurance companies) are unattended fags (Brit for cigarettes). If you used to smoke and have currently stopped, tell your insurance company you will be happy with your savings.
Install an anti-burglar system.
Home insurance love it when you get involved in your own protection. They see it as a sign of a responsible and low risk client. Some insurance companies might even help with the costs and they will all reduce your home insurance policy premiums.