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Don't be tempted by home insurance offers

Last post Tue, Jun 24 2008, 9:17 AM by PeterA. 2 replies.
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  •  Fri, May 16 2008, 10:48 AM

    Don't be tempted by home insurance offers

    There are a host of enticing deals currently available in the home insurance market aimed at luring new customers. However, these deals aren’t necessarily as attractive as they first appear. Andy Leadbetter, head of motor and home insurance, examines some of the offers around, suggest some tips to reduce your premium and illustrates the benefits of shopping around.

    Click here to read this article.

    Do you have any advice about home insurance that you can share with others, or perhaps you've had a bad claims experience? Click reply to have your say...

    Compare quotes from more than 60 home insurance providers


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    • Post Points: 20
  •  Mon, Jun 23 2008, 11:23 PM

    Re: Don't be tempted by home insurance offers

    What's the point in comparing prices and simply coming up with the cheapest policy? Unless you know the differences in policy coverage and the service on offer from each of the insurers then the comparison is meaningless. In this article, the insurers behind the three cheapest quotes aren't even named so we don't know who would actually be paying out in the event of a claim. In my experience, home insurance policies vary at the fringes - with nasty little sub-limits, single artice limits, daft exclusions and sneaky definitions that catch out the naive and uneducated (i.e. the consumer).

    If all everyone wanted was save money then everytime we bought something we'd simply look for the cheapest product available, irrespective of quality. Perhaps we should all be driving around in Perodua Kelisas, wearing items from the Primark sale as we trundle back to our tiny homes to enjoy a pint of Tesco "Value" lager in front of the 14 inch black and white TV.

    If you're looking for insurance then surely you want quality and value ahead of "cheap"? After all, you're paying your premium for nothing more than a promise. If you have to make a big expensive claim on your very cheap home insurance policy then you might be faced with sorting out the kind of mess that only a disorganised, service-free, penny-pinching insurer can make. Still, at least you'll be able to console yourself with the thought that you saved yourself £30 on the renewal premium!

    Even Direct Line (which marketed the idea of "cheap insurance" in the first place) has realised that it needs to sell its products on more than just price.

    • Post Points: 20
  •  Tue, Jun 24 2008, 9:17 AM

    Re: Don't be tempted by home insurance offers

    I totally agree!

    It is not all about price. In fact, while in the main, the comparison sites are a benefit to the consumer, what they are doing is driving prices down and to accomodate this, many of the historically standard benefits are being removed to the detriment of the customer.

    This is not always obvious on MS.com because the site focuses purely on price. MS.com will say that customers can review the benefits that are added to polices but this is not displayed in a clear, easy to compare format. indeed, when clicking through to the provider and all the optional extras are added back in, the price is greater than the MS quote. One has to try a few providers to see which one provides the most value when adding the extras required. Go Compare's 5-star rating and comparison makes this a bit clearer but the comparison sites could do better.

    Travel Insurance is a prime example: MS.com concentrates on price. The cheapest is definitely not the best. It is a manual job to compare benefits associated with each policy to ensure the policy that suits ones needs is selected.

    Stop concentrating purely on price MS.com and include the benefits to allow the consumer to guage value for money.

    • Post Points: 5