insurance
Brian Brown, Head of Insight and Research
With over 500 home insurance policies in the market today, it can be difficult to determine where to start if you want to bring your premium down without compromising on the level of cover you have.
Our research encompasses 297 buildings insurance policies and 298 contents insurance policies across the whole market and we've identified several ways to get a discount without impacting on your actual cover.
- Go online - 19% of policies give a discount for online purchases via the insurer’s website
- Buy buildings and contents at the same time - 85% of policies give a discount if both buildings and contents insurance cover is purchased from the same insurer at the same time
- Tell the insurer if you haven't made any claims - 67% of policies offer a ‘no claims discount’ if you do not make a claim
- Fit an alarm - 69% of contents policies offer discounts for alarms fitted
- Fit smoke detectors - 22% of contents policies offer discounts for smoke detectors fitted
- Fit locks on your windows and doors - 64% of contents policies offer discounts for approved door and window locks
- Join your local Neighbourhood Watch scheme - 43% of contents policies offer discounts if you are a member of a Neighbourhood Watch programme. Contact your local council for more information.
- Pay by direct debit - 30% of providers do not charge extra for payments by monthly direct debit which would help spread the premium at no additional cost
If you're still unsure which policy best suits your needs, you can use our Star Ratings as a guide to help your choose the overall level of features and benefits offered. Policies offering a basic level of features and benefits would be rated as 1 Star and those with the most comprehensive range of benefits a 4 or a 5 Star. Alternatively, compare your policy features with another policy to see the difference in cover provided.
Allianz has appointed Gary Coton as its household claims operations manager. Gary brings with him 17 years of operational experience, most recently at AIG, where his principal responsibilities were to improve operational efficiencies in the Premium Booking and Accounts Receivable process. In his new role, Gary will be accountable for ensuring the day-to-day management of UK Household and Corporate Partner claims for Direct and Broker personal lines business and he will also be representing Bristol Claims at various Direct, Broker and Corporate Partner trading boards.
Industrial Insurance Company HDI-Gerling has announced the creation of a new branch in Ireland, based in Dublin.
The formation of the branch aims to build HDI-Gerling’s brand in Ireland as a strong leading market. It will deliver technical knowhow and a service proposition aligned directly to the needs of its brokers and clients.
HDI-Gerling has for many years written business in Ireland from its UK operation which will continue in its responsibility for Ireland and provide claims, risk engineering and support services.
In Ireland HDI-G will focus on industrial and commercial business and underwrite risks in the property, liability and engineering classes.
Paul Moraghan has joined HDI-Gerling as general manager to head the branch and Frank Hynes has also been appointed to manage the liability portfolio. Both bring with them a wealth of experience, an in-depth understanding of the Irish insurance market and strong broker support.
Catlin Europe, the Continental European operations of Catlin Group has announced that Detlef Offenhau will join the company on 1 September as Senior Liability Underwriter for Europe.
Detlef Offenhau, who will be based in the European insurance headquarters office in Cologne, will be responsible for all of Catlin’s liability insurance activities in Continental Europe. He has more than 20 years of experience in Liability underwriting and was most recently Senior Commercial Manager at AXA Corporate Solutions. In this position Detlef was responsible for all lines of business for strategic key accounts and brokers. He previously was in charge of the liability department as liability manager for Germany and US Home Foreign business for AXA Corporate Solutions Germany.
Independent financial research company Defaqto’s annual report on the motor insurance industry has found that only one in eight policies offer any cover for road rage incidents.
This comes despite Defaqto’s consumer research that identified cover for road rage incidents as an important differentiator for consumers when deciding on policy purchase, particularly among drivers aged 55-plus.
94% of motor insurance policies in 2010 do not offer any cover for road rage, although this is still an improvement from 2005, when the figure was 99%. Benefit limits range from £500 to £5,000 and usually cover costs incurred for professional counselling, although some also give a benefit for physical assault.
Mike Powell, author of the report and Defaqto’s Insight Analyst for General Insurance, said: “Although this is a potentially useful benefit, the exclusions under this section are very clear and could make claiming difficult. Exclusions include incidents caused by a relative or a person known to the policyholder, or incidents caused or contributed by anything said or done by the insured person or passenger in the car. In the heat of the moment, many people may find it difficult to stay calm, and it could therefore be hard to prove to the insurer that the insured person did not contribute to the situation by anything that was said.”
Confidence among landlords has dipped for the first time in almost two years, driven by uncertainties including housing benefits and tax changes announced in the emergency budget, according to the latest NLA Landlords’ Optimism Index published today.
The Index dropped from 51 to 47 points between Q1 and Q2 2010.
54% of landlords (57% in Q1 2010) rate their prospects for the next three months as good or very good. However, four in 10 landlords expect the increase in Capital Gains Tax to have a detrimental impact on their investment, while others predict the increase, and any future interest rate rises, will prompt a decline in investment.
Landlords also expressed concern about planned cuts to the Local Housing Allowance which could lead to more rent arrears.
Chris Norris, Policy Manager, NLA, commenting on the Index, said: “Despite gains over the past two years, landlord optimism has dropped from the first quarter of 2010 as landlords consider tax changes announced in the emergency budget and they hear talk of a double-dip recession. Furthermore, cuts to Local Housing Allowance is causing concern to many landlords as it could leave their tenants struggling to pay their rent.”
“Despite these negative factors, the NLA / BDRC Continental survey shows that more than half of landlords are still positive about the next three months, predicting strong rental demand as people hold off deciding whether to continue renting or buy whilst current economic uncertainty continues.”
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