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Tag: rebuild costs

Home Renovations / Insurance Builders need

Posted on by Matt Bloomhill

No matter what building work you’re having done, everyone wants their home improvements to go well with no “hiccups” along the way. If something goes wrong, insurance may be able to step in. That’s why as a homeowner, you’ll want to know that any tradesperson you have working for you, has the right cover in place.

Public liability insurance can cover legal and compensation costs if someone is hurt or killed, or their property is damaged a result of their work. For example a post-worker may trip over your builders tools and injure themselves. This cover is a legal requirement, but if your builder doesn’t have it – you should consider having this cover yourself.

Employers liability covers your builder if one of their employee’s is injured or killed whilst working on your home improvements. It is a legal requirements to have this insurance.

What happens if a storm damages a partial build that isn’t completed yet? Contract works insurance is designed to cover any works in progress that have been affected by certain scenarios listed on a policy.

A reputable builder should happily want to show you their certificates before you hire them. Always ensure you check how long the policies are valid for as your building work may take some time to complete.

It is essential that you let your home insurance provider know when you’re having work done so you can make sure the policy remains valid. It may be worth considering taking out accidental damage insurance and legal cover just in case there are any issues with the work completed.

Always ensure you are fully insured before beginning your renovation journey!

What’s the rebuild cost of my home?

Posted on by Matt Bloomhill

When it comes to home insurance, correctly working out the rebuild cost of your property will help ensure you buy the right amount of cover. But how do you come up with a figure? 

The rebuild cost of your home is the amount it costs in labour and materials to reconstruct it from the ground up if it was destroyed by fire, flood or a storm.

There is a difference between the rebuild cost and market value of your home. The market value relates to how much someone may pay to purchase your property. The Market value is likely to be significantly higher than the rebuild cost because it also takes into account factors such as the value of the land the property sits on and the desirability of the location.

If your home is made of specialist materials, such as thatch or even timber and concrete, it could be more expensive to rebuild than a typical bricks and mortar home. The same applies for a listed building, to check whether you live in a listed building you need to check with the English Heritage, Historic Sctoland, Cadw or the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.

The type of property is also important. If you live in a block of flats, the rebuild may affect the entire building, making it more difficult to estimate how much cover is required. You need an estimated cost for rebuilding your home so that you know how much buildings insurance to take out. If you underestimate the cost, there could be a shortfall if your home needs rebuilding. If you overvalue the amount, you’ll be over-insured and pay too much in premiums. Given flats and maisonettes are constructed differently to houses, a surveyor may be required for an accurate valuation.

To check your rebuild costs you can take a look here. We are not affiliated with Rebuild Cost Assessment however we have used them many times.

For home insurance quotes, please get in touch with us to obtain a competitive quote from your local independent insurance broker – Bloomhill Insurance Solutions Ltd.