I don’t know about everyone else, but insurance is one of the things I most hate paying for…
However, last year I reluctantly paid a huge amount in travel insurance, which then came in super handy when I had £4Ks worth of claims to make
I’ve just published a guide to the different types of insurance in the UK, where I’ve looked at car insurance, life insurance, contents insurance, and more!
Which types of insurance do you never fail to buy?
I currently buy household and motor insurance with providers tending to vary yearly after reviewing renewal quotes. Also always buy travel insurance for trips overseas. Although not taking many overseas trips at the moment
Lastly also have private medical insurance which is the one that tends to cause me the biggest headache. Been with an existing provider for some time and not easy to move to a new provider and get the same cover. However due to exorbitant increase in premium at this years renewal will definitely be looking at a new provider for this
On the back of your article, @rebekah, I googled for different types of insurance and was surprised to discover one called Umbrella Insurance.
Now I know those pesky, blustery, winds can cause your brolly to flip inside out and break, but really? Insurance to cover the cost of a new ?
Turns out that this type of insurance is what I knew as Gap Insurance.
Only time I have seen it offered was when a colleague bought a pre-registered car, and the dealership offered it as cover for any shortfall (following a total loss or theft claim) between the insurers’ value of the car, and the purchase price. Allegedly, could only be bought at time of purchase of the vehicle. (Suggests to me that the vehicle is over-priced to start with then, and the dealership know that!)
I assume then that Umbrella, or Gap Insurance is still available to the public and wonder how many readers actually subscribe to them, or have done at some point in their lives.
Life insurance, home insurance, motor insurance, medical insurance, dental insurance, car hire excess insurance, annual travel insurance, car breakdown insurance, …
You can get insurance for practically any risk, at a price - didn’t Heidi Klum insure her legs? And didn’t some scotch whiskey company offer £1m to whoever could prove the existence of the Loch Ness Monster, and then took out insurance against the risk of having to pay out?
I’ve seen on the MSE newsletter that the FCA confirmed last week that from January car and home insurers must charge renewing and new customers the same. While this is good for people who never switch, it probably means that savvy switchers won’t be able to get as good a deal anymore.
From the newsletter, Martin says:
"With firms forced to offer new and existing customers the same prices, the new structure will likely meet somewhere a little above halfway between them.
"It’s good news for those who never switch, as renewals will be cheaper. But it’s bad news for those who actively seek the best deals. While they should still be able to save due to competition, differences will fall, and they’ll pay more overall.
“It’s possible today is a sweet spot to check car insurance and home insurance prices. While the new regime starts in January, insurers will likely start to shift algorithms before - there are even signs now (but the data isn’t conclusive). This likely means the cheapest prices will disappear rapidly for those who compare and switch. So I suggest everyone check ASAP to see if you can cut costs by grabbing cheaper switchers’ deals.”
Hmm, I assume car and home insurance are the two most common types of insurance that you renew annually? Would be interesting to see if they did expand it to all types of insurance though
I usually get an annual travel insurance policy. I didn’t bother with that this year, although I have a few UK trips planned so I’m wondering whether I should look into getting something?
I hired a car when I went to Cornwall last month, and got car hire excess insurance. Very glad I did because I maaay have scratched it going down a super tiny Cornish road
And I’ve just started paying for jewellery insurance!