contentsn(not buildings ) insurance in SE22 for properties with subsidence

[intexasatthe moment]

Has anyone else found brokers/insurance companies saying that living in a property with a history of subsidence or living in an area with subsidence limits policy choice and pushes up the price ?

I've been told that contents policies have, as standard ,cover for rehousing if required and that if subsidence is likely ( or has happened in the past ) that they won't offer to risky properties .

And no ,not an option to say please omit cover for rehousing .

[Penguin68]

I've been told that contents policies have, as standard, cover for rehousing

Really - that's not on my contents policy. Only for the house fabric (I insure separately). Try National Farmers Union - they can be flexible. If you have the same cover on 2 policies they don't pay out on one of them anyway. So they shouldn't penalise you.

[intexasatthe moment]

Thank you Penguin ,that's very helpful .

[dbboy]

Surprisingly TSB offer very good deals for buildings and contents insurance. Contents insurance should have no impact on premiums even if you are in a subsidence area.

[Sue]

Penguin68 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I've been told that contents policies have, as

> standard, cover for rehousing

>

> Really - that's not on my contents policy. Only

> for the house fabric (I insure separately). Try

> National Farmers Union - they can be flexible. If

> you have the same cover on 2 policies they don't

> pay out on one of them anyway. So they shouldn't

> penalise you.

If memory serves, the NFU was not interested in insuring my house.

Can't remember if it was because of the postcode or because of a subsidence claim (except it wasn't called subsidence by the insurance company at the time, plus it was caused by faulty drains and was completely sorted) in the dim and distant past.

ETA: Oh sorry, I have just realised this is about contents insurance. Though I have a joint buildings/contents policy.

[Lynne]

We've been treated for subsidence and after that our insurance got more and more expensive and I couldn't find anyone else. Then I saw a mention of Aviva covering subsidenced (I know there's no such word) properties and we've been with them ever since. They insisted on a survey first, but we didn't mind this as we were saving so much from our old policy

[George Orwell]

Our house has been underpinned and has had subsidence. The buildings (only) policy was found through a specialist broker and at a pretty reasonable cost too. That policy covers alternative accommodation but contents was extra. I chose Aviva for contents alone and have requested and got an exclusion for alternative accommodation cover as I don't want cover twice. The current cost for contents is about ?70 pa.

[intexasatthe moment]

Interesting George . The brokers have phoned me back to say that they have checked with the insurers and they will now offer an exclusion on the accommodation clause .

But the cost will be ?360 ...?70 sounds very reasonable and attractive !

[George Orwell]

Maybe Aviva aren't available to brokers - I really don't know. All I can suggest is for you to give Aviva a call. If it helps, I have declined Accidental damage cover ( if I crack a basin or stain the carpet it's my problem - we're a careful lot here and I'm happy to take the chance ). My concern is fire, flood and theft. There are contents limits ranging from ?2000 for any one valuable article, ?2500 for contents in outbuildings, ?5000 for home office equipment and even up to ?250 for a tree or shrub. There are a few other specifics, but the actual sum insured is unlimited.

It might not work for you as yours is a special case, but Aviva often do good cashback on Quidco if you use the internet.

[intexasatthe moment]

Even more interesting George - I wish you were my PA ,I'm hopeless /lazy about this kind of thing .

It had never occurred to me that one could opt out of certain items like accidental damage .The broker was suggeating I move from an existing Aviva policy to a new one .

I think I should ditch the broker . The policy was one I had through work ,where the broker used by the firm offered good rates for employees . But those rates are no longer good .

Thank you for posting George ,bit of a wake up call for me .