In Greece, with the home ownership rate reaching 70%, only 16% of homes are insured against natural disasters. Of these, approximately half are insured on behalf of the banks that have granted the housing loans.
Due to lack of insurance education in our country, there are misconceptions and myths such as:
- Home insurance is expensive and unnecessary
- We will only insure the building that the bank obliges us to
- Home insurance is necessary for the owner and not the tenant
Question: Do you know how much home insurance costs?
Answer: As much as one coffee for every €1,000 worth of your home (€1 to €2 annual premium for every €1,000 value)
Question: If our house catches fire from a short circuit and burns down what will happen?
Answer: for the value of a few coffees we burned some (hundreds) of thousands of Euros
So we insure our house. Do we only insure the building or also get a contents insurance?
Let’s start by agreeing that our home is where our belongings are, a part of our personal property. The things in our home have financial as well as emotional value. They are objects usually necessary for our daily living.
How much does the contents of our house cost? See a list of what a 100 sq.m.house can contain.
- Clothes – shoes
- Furniture (indoor/outdoor)
- Electrical appliances (fridge, stove, washing machine, TV, etc.)
- Cooking utensils – bathroom equipment – sheets/towels
- Electronic devices (computers, gaming machines, etc.)
It is estimated that depending on the quantity and quality of the items, the average content of a 100 m2 residence ranges from €18,000 to €25,000.
Is my property at risk? And if so, from what?
The classic answer is that we take care of our belongings so they are not in danger. But there are also contingencies. See a list of dangers that threaten the contents of our home and may be beyond our ability to predict or control.
- Fire
- Water leakage from pipes
- Severe weather phenomena (lightening, storm, strong wind, etc.)
- Burglary – theft
How and how much am I compensated?
There are insurance programs available that compensate for the new value of items that have been acquired in the last 5 years, while for older items you calculate a percentage of age. This simply means that if our insured home contents are damaged or lost, we will be compensated with an amount sufficient to replace each item with a new one of the same or equivalent use and specification. We can also choose a plan with First Risk Insurance. This means that you will be compensated without checking whether the total value of your household goods is lower than its insured value.
After all, who does the security of the contents of a home concern? The answer is EVERYONE. But there are also some categories that we may have to mention separately such as:
- Students. Relevant at this time as at the beginning of the new academic year many parents buy entire home appliances to essentially equip a new (however small) household. Even if the student’s home is insured by the owner, usually the student’s property is uninsured.
- Tenants. They should know that if there is insurance from the owner, it only covers the building. Even in the event of theft, this policy will compensate for any damage to the building but not damage or loss to our personal belongings.
How much does it cost for a contents insurance?
We insure the value of the contents of our home, we ensure the immediate replacement of items necessary for our everyday life at a cost starting from €50 per year.
For a free quote and/or to discuss your needs regarding a contents insurance click here.