Exclusions and limits
Each policy will have certain exclusions where you will not be allowed to claim. It's important to check your exclusions and cover limits with your provider and in the policy documents
SUPER SAVE UP TO
£170
ON YOUR home INSURANCE1
We’re committed to finding the right cover for you and your home.
That’s why we compare over 65 of the biggest insurance providers in the country, including:
1 51% of consumers could save up to £170.96 a year on buildings and contents insurance. Consumer Intelligence, January 2023. UK only.
2 Accurate as of March 2023
Buildings insurance covers your home from damage by flood, fire, subsidence, storm or vandalism, protecting the structure of the building (the walls, roof, floors and extensions) and its fixtures (built-in wardrobes, bathroom suites and fitted kitchens).
Your insurer will also repair damage caused by leaky pipes or faulty electronics, as well as criminal or accidental damage. If necessary, they’ll even foot the bill to rebuild it completely. Your possessions are not protected, however. This needs a separate contents insurance policy.
Your mortgage lender will require you to have buildings insurance because as soon as you exchange contracts on a property, you’re legally responsible for the building. If you own your home outright, buildings insurance protects your investment.
Buildings insurance is not a legal requirement but, considering the amount of money we spend on our homes, insurance could be seen as a good idea. This is especially if you live in a location where there is a high risk of damage to the structure of your home – for example flooding, fire, or subsidence.
Bear in mind that you should only get buildings insurance if you own your own property, and only if your home isn’t part of a block of flats. If you are a tenant, your landlord is the one to buy insurance for the building.
Whether you have a mortgage or own the house outright, buildings insurance protects your home from all sorts of problems
Buildings insurance covers your investment from structural issues, though you may need specific landlords’ insurance too
If you own an apartment in a larger block of flats, an individual buildings insurance policy isn’t necessary
Renters don’t need buildings insurance – that’s the responsibility of the owner. Consider renters insurance instead
Buildings insurance covers the physical structure of the building, as well as any permanent fixtures like a bathroom suite or fitted kitchen. This is included in the most basic level of cover, although there are a range of optional extras homeowners can add to increase the scope of their cover:
Fire can be one of the most devastating types of property damage, usually requiring total replacement rather than just repairs. Thankfully, accidental fire damage is always covered as standard.
Cover for burst rivers, storms, or heavy rain comes as standard for almost all buildings insurance policies. However, groundwater flooding isn’t always included, so check your policy documents.
Storms can cause all types of damage to a property, from electrical damage to water damage. Most buildings insurance policies will cover damages from violent wind, rain, hail, snow, or lightning.
Both subsidence and heave can cause devastating damage to a home if they’re not addressed quickly. So, buildings insurance will cover structural repairs if you spot any cracks or signs of rising damp.
Collisions and falling debris
Building insurance can cover the cost of clearing debris as well as rebuilding damage caused by objects colliding with your home. This can in fallen trees or satellite dishes and vehicle collisions.
Escape of water is one of the most common claims made for domestic property damage. Buildings insurance will cover the cost of repairing and replacing burst or frozen pipes and any water damage associated.
Broken windows and doors require urgent repair for the safety of you and your loved ones. With buildings insurance you don’t have to delay these important repairs and replacements that keep your home secure.
Some domestic policies will cover outbuildings as standard while others offer it as an option add-on. With this cover, you can protect your shed or garage on your property and their valuable contents.
Garden insurance, which can come as an optional cover, will protect valuable items that you leave in your garden. This can include outdoor furniture or gardening tools as well as plants and ornaments.
Swimming pools
Swimming pools are not usually covered as standard unless damaged at the same time as your home’s building. By purchasing extra cover, you can claim for structural damage to your pool.
Ponds and patios
Optional cover will cover structural damage to your pond or patio as well as valuable items kept outdoors. However, buildings insurance will not cover any fish that you keep in your pond or other livestock.
Accidental damage includes any sudden and unintentional damage caused by an outside force, such as breaking a window or staining a carpet. This cover can protect both your home and its contents.
Alternative accommodation
If your home is badly damaged, it may not be safe to stay there while you’re waiting on repairs. With this cover, you can claim for alternative accommodation while your home is being repaired.
Home emergency cover will cover the cost of calling out a tradesman due to a sudden incident, like a broken boiler or burst pipes. Emergency call-outs can be expensive, so this is a valuable cover option.
When shopping around for a policy, there are a number of things you should keep in mind that can help you get a great deal on cover that meets your needs:
Each policy will have certain exclusions where you will not be allowed to claim. It's important to check your exclusions and cover limits with your provider and in the policy documents
Buildings insurance alone will only cover the structure to your home and not the contents. If you want extra protection for your belongings, consider getting contents cover as well
Excess is the amount that you volunteer to contribute towards each claim. A greater excess can reduce the cost of your policy but also means you will have to pay more to cover repairs
Providers have a limit for how long they will cover your home while it is unoccupied, with the standard length being up to 30 days. This is something to keep an eye on if you plan on travelling for extended periods
Check how much public liability cover is included as standard with your policy. This valuable protection will cover your legal costs if anyone dies or is injured on your property, or if any property is damaged
Some providers have a helpline that you can use in case of emergencies for advice and assistance. This can be a valuable service that ensures you get fast emergency repairs when you need them
The sum insured for your home should cover the full amount it would cost to rebuild from the foundations up at today’s prices – in case something like a gas explosion destroys it completely.
The rebuild cost of a house is how much it would cost to construct it in the same way with the same materials from scratch at today’s prices, including labour. This is not the same as your house’s market value, which also includes the price of the land it’s built on, and local amenities and transport links.
It’s hard to calculate the exact cost of rebuilding, so ensure your estimate is as accurate as possible. A chartered surveyor can help – or you can use MoneySuperMarket’s own building value calculator.
"Buildings insurance is a must-have for everyone with a mortgage, unless you live in a block of flats. Remember that your home's rebuild cost is not the same as its market value – which includes factors like the value of the land it's built on and local amenities.
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Older materials are often more expensive
We need to know what the roof, walls and frame are made of
Local crime statistics often have an effect on your premiums
A higher subsidence risk means more chance of serious damage
If the property is near a river there is a higher flood risk
These indicate a larger building and higher costs
Listed buildings are especially expensive to insure
There are quite a few variables which affect your buildings insurance premiums, including where you live and what type of home you live in. However, the number of bedrooms it has is often a good yardstick. Here’s how much buildings insurance costs on average per number of bedrooms1:
On average buildings insurance policies can cost as little as approximately £772. One good way to find cheaper buildings insurance premiums is to shop around and see if you can find a cheaper policy elsewhere, instead of auto-renewing. Here are our top tips:
Compare quotes from leading insurers through MoneySuperMarket, allowing you to compare deals and pick the best offer for you
It's cheaper to pay for your buildings, rather than monthly, as you won’t pay interest
A history of not claiming on your insurance is usually rewarded with a discount on your premiums
Buildings insurance and contents insurance are two sides of the home insurance coin. The former protects the structure of your property if it’s damaged by natural disasters or vandalism, and the latter protects your possessions.
As a rule of thumb, anything that can be carried out of a house is protected under contents insurance, which includes carpets, curtains, white goods, light fittings and furniture. Anything fixed to the structure of the house, including built-in wardrobes, plus things like your garage or conservatory, are covered by buildings insurance.
No, you don’t need documents to get a quote. However you do need to know basic facts about the property you want to insure, including its age and the materials it is built from.
The simplest way to get a quote on buildings insurance is to give MoneySuperMarket a few details on your home. We will use your information to get quotes from a range of house insurance companies, which you can then search and choose the deal that suits you. You can also search for contents insurance at the same time, or even buy a policy which combines home and contents insurance.
While your mortgage lender will almost certainly require you to buy buildings insurance, you aren’t obliged to buy it from their preferred insurer. In fact, you’ll probably be able to find cheaper insurance by shopping around and comparing prices.
If you own a leasehold property, you might find that the building is already insured by a landlord who owns the freehold. If you’re not sure, your solicitor can advise you.
In certain blocks of flats where leaseholders have joined forces to buy a portion of the freehold, you might have to buy your own buildings cover.
Most buildings insurance policies do not cover rising damp, unfortunately. It’s unusual for home insurance policies to cover any kind of gradual deterioration.
You can still get buildings insurance if you live in a flood risk area, but your premiums are likely to be quite a bit more expensive. You can find out more in our guide to flood insurance.
If you want to extend or convert your house, or make significant renovations, you should tell your insurer before the work begins. You will probably be able to make changes to your policy, but it’s best to inform them first, in case anything goes wrong and your policy is invalidated.
If you are leaving your property empty for more than 31 days at a time, you will probably need a specialist unoccupied home insurance policy.
If you haven’t been able to get the information from the title deed to your home, which should have been obtained by your conveyancer or estate agent when you bought it, the easiest way to check the age of your home is with the government’s Land Registry service.
Garages are considered separate structures for the purposes of buildings insurance, and you’ll have to list it as such when you apply. You should still be able to get cover, but it’s not wise to claim it as another ordinary room.
Buildings insurance is available to people who own listed buildings or those made from non-standard materials such as thatched roofs, though the chances are you'll have to pay a little extra due to the extra risk, and the extra rebuild costs.
You work hard to earn your money, and we don’t think you should waste a penny of it paying over the odds on your household bills. That’s why at MoneySuperMarket, we’re on a mission to save Britain money.
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You might be wondering if we work with all the companies in the market, or if our commercial relationships with our partners might make us feature one company above another. We’ve got nothing to hide, and we want to give you clear answers when it comes to questions like these, so we’ve pulled together everything you need to know on this page.
We aim to show you home insurance quotes from as many insurance companies as possible, so that you can find the right policy for you.
Unfortunately, we can’t promise to show quotes from every insurance provider, because not all companies want to be included on comparison websites.
We won’t offer you advice or make a recommendation, but we will provide you with all the information you need to help you decide which is the right policy for you.
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