Are you aware of how much a fire in your home can cost you?
If your house is struck by fire, it can result in quite a hefty sum of money usually it can cost thousands in insurance claims. Recently new figures released show that water damage is the number one cause of loss in homes, with over 30% per cent of claims coming from this single area.
This isn’t surprising as Ireland has suffered from quite a lot of bad weather which has resulted in flooding. However it also shows that a fire can cause the biggest strain to your finances. The average cost of an insurance claim for fire damage is just under €15,000.
That’s six times more expensive than the average water damage claim.
Here’s what the claims survey found:
It is very important that you are covered for all costs that may arise from any damage to your home and always make sure that you are adequately insured including the rebuild cost of your home.
Claims
David Hughes said that recent weather conditions have brought the issue of home insurance and claims to the forefront of the minds of the Irish public.
Liability claims – where someone has an accident on your property – produce high average claims amounts, but these events are rare.
Although about 48 per cent of people opt for accident damage cover, it still accounts for almost one in five claims.
Meanwhile, break-ins only accounts for one-in-eight claims.
Hughes said that the recent flooding and storms “are likely to change the landscape of home insurance claims for 2014″.
It’s difficult to know what will happen with premiums this year. The weather has definitely leaded to an increase in claims recently, but insurance pricing is cyclical and all insurers experience cycles of low to high claims volumes. When claims volumes are low, insurers will tend to reduce their rates to remain competitive and this is the market we are currently operating in.
