KBzine: the original kitchen and bathroom industry e-news - since 2002
28th January 2021

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Leader_19th_November_2010

Millions of home owners risk losing their cover because they make inaccurate declarations when applying for their insurance or don’t notify their insurers of any changes.

On-line household insurance provider www.homeprotect.co.uk is warning that while we might have given all the correct information when we took out our policies, we may have been negligent in informing our providers of changes.

Although most of us are aware that when taking out a new policy, we have to inform our insurers about any previous flooding, we might not realise that we have to inform them if, for example, we let a room, are carrying out refurbishments, have extended the property to add a room or are using the property to run a home business (unless in a purely clerical capacity).

If we don’t keep them fully up-to-date, this might invalidate the policy, leaving us without cover in the event that we need to make a claim.

 “What we are seeing with more and more householders who approach us for a quote is that some insurers are either not asking the right questions to elicit the material facts or don’t make clear what is not covered,” says Homeprotect Chief Executive David Walker. 

“Others don’t make clear what is not covered, particularly when it comes to online purchasing as customers are often fast-tracked to the ‘buy page’.

“Most of the time people get away with it, but they should understand that their homes may be at risk if they submit inaccurate applications for household insurance. There’s no doubt that buying insurance can be a minefield.”

The insurance industry should be doing more to educate the public and make life easier for us all. Most honest citizens do not understand how insurance works – and who can blame them?

19th November 2010