Homeprotect home insurance review

Homeprotect’s specialist home insurance is available to homeowners, holiday homeowners, landlords, tenants and students. Basic home emergency and legal expenses cover are included as standard to the broker’s policy. What’s more, the buildings insurance is 5*-Defaqto-rated. Here’s what else we think you should know about Homeprotect.

Who is Homeprotect?

Homeprotect was launched in 2002 and provides home insurance products online. It also offers a range of specialist insurance products such as garage, shed, artwork, handbag, glasses, jewellery and gadget insurance. It also offers home business insurance for people running their business from home such as B&B owners or childminders.

Homeprotect is a trading style of Avantia Insurance Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

• Who underwrites the home insurance from Homeprotect?

  Homeprotect home insurance policies are underwritten by AXA insurance.

What are Homeprotect’s cover options?

Homeprotect offers 5*-Defaqto-rated buildings insurance with up to £1,000,000 cover against the main building of a home as well as fixtures and fittings such as carpets. It will also cover against loss or damage of personal belongings contained within a home as well as while outside the home.

Through Homeprotect, specialist home insurance is also available. This is for specially constructed buildings such as listed buildings, converted barns or timber-framed houses. It can also cover homes located in flood risk areas.

What is covered under my policy?

Homeprotect’s home insurance policies offer cover and protection for your home against certain risks. These include:

• Fire
• Storm
• Flood
• Escape of water
• Theft
• Malicious damage
• Subsidence, landslip or heave
• Personal liability
• Basic accidental damage

Homeprotect’s home insurance policies also include some extras as standard. Check out some of these additional extras below. For a full list, check out the Homeprotect policy booklets.

• Alternative accommodation
• Loss of rent
• Landlord contents
• Basic home emergency cover
• Basic legal expenses cover
• Special events
• Tenant building liability
• Possessions in the open
• Possessions stored in outbuildings
• Plants in the garden
• Possessions temporarily removed
• Student possessions

Optional extras

Homeprotect offers a range of additional protection to bolt onto your specific home insurance policy, including:

• Full accidental damage cover. This will provide comprehensive cover for accidents such as spilt wine on carpets or damage to pipes following DIY jobs.
• Full legal expenses cover. Up to £50,000 cover for legal action.
• Full home emergency cover. Cover for emergency situations such as sudden boiler or heating system failures, leaking pipes, water tanks or toilets, the removal of pests and vermin, and roof damage due to a storm, plus others.
• Lost key cover. Up to £1,500 for replacement locks and keys and locksmith charges.

What is my excess?

Your insurance excess is the amount of money you will need to pay towards a claim. Your insurer won’t pay out for a claim that costs less than this amount.

You’ll find details about your excesses in your policy document.

How much is this going to cost me?

There are a number of factors that can affect the cost of your Homeprotect home insurance premium, including:

• The cover option you choose. Enhancing your buildings, contents and combined cover policies with optional extras will provide more features and broader cover than Homeprotect’s standard cover options, which will likely be reflected in the price.
• Your sum insured. The greater the amount you wish to insure your home or contents for, the more you can expect to pay for cover.
• Your home. The age of your home and the materials from which it is constructed can influence its ability to withstand damage.
• Where your home is located. Certain risks, for example storm or theft, are more prevalent in certain areas and insurers will take this into consideration when calculating your premium.
• Security. Security measures such as an alarm system and deadbolts can act as a deterrent to thieves and therefore reduce the cost of your cover.

What is the claims process for Homeprotect?

You should call the 24-hour Homeprotect claims line on 0330 660 0660.

Alternatively, you can make a claim by completing the online claim form on the Homeprotect website.

You will need to provide the following information:

• Your policy details and personal contact details.
• The date of the incident.
• Details such as the cause of the incident.
• The value of any lost or damaged items being claimed for.
• Names and addresses of any other people involved or responsible for the incident, including details of injuries.

You may also need to provide the following additional information:

• Original purchase receipts, invoices, manual booklets or photographs, bank statements, utility bills, plans or deeds of your property.
• Purchase dates and location of lost or damaged property.
• Confirmation from a suitably qualified expert that the damaged property you intend to claim back for is beyond repair.

It’s vital that you let your insurer know about an incident as soon as possible. Failure to do this could result in a rejected claim later on.

Homeprotect pros and cons

Written by

Helen Champion

Writer

Helen Champion was an associate editor at Finder. She has worked in communications for over 16 years and currently writes on a range of topics including insurance and money transfers in the hope of empowering people to make better financial decisions. During her broadcast career, she helped to produce hundreds of news and breaking news reports for Associated Press TV and ITV News. And in public relations, she managed several high-profile public relations campaigns for Macmillan Cancer Support, the General Medical Council and overseas for Qatar Foundation on behalf of BLJ Worldwide. Helen has a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University of Lincoln, a passion for practising karate in the dojo and a deep love of making mischief with her sons. See full bio