How to Calculate the Value of Your Home Contents

When you purchase home insurance that includes contents cover, you must give your insurer a correct value for how much everything you own is worth. If you make a mistake and your house is burgled or for example, damaged by flooding, there could be awful financial repercussions for you. If you under insure your home, you could left short if worst comes to worst and you have to make a claim.

To make sure everything runs smoothly for you while you’re calculating yours, AIB Home Insurance brings you this handy guide:

Start from square one
A mistake people often make is making only a rough calculation of the value of the contents of their home. While calculating this, obvious items are usually included such as bikes, electronics and jewellery but more permanent items including furniture and appliances can sometimes be forgotten.

A good technique to use is to imagine you’re starting from square one and that you have to replace everything in your home. This helps you to include everything from carpets to chests of drawers.

Room by room
Go through your home room by room. Write down a list of all the contents, put a figure next to each item and then total this amount. It’s worth remembering that AIB Home Insurance provides ‘new-for-old’ cover. Therefore, take note of how much it would cost to buy the same or equivalent item new.

Outside items
Contents can be defined as portable items and possessions you’d take with you if you were to move. AIB Contents Insurance will cover outside personnel effects belonging to you and your family. This includes cover for the contents of a shed, outside office and garage including garden furniture, tools and mowers.

How to carry out your research?
It can be pretty straight-forward to calculate the replacement value for most of your items by using the Internet. However, for some speciality items like antiques or jewellery, it may be worth visiting a specialist dealer. Where an items value exceeds €5,000 it may need to be specified on the policy.

AIB Home Insurance has the cover that will suit all your Home Insurance requirements. We’re offering a fantastic €100 off new Home Insurance policies for a limited time. Simply click here to get a quote today. Offer is subject to minimum premium of €157.50 and ends 08/06/2015.

Some of the links above bring you to external websites. Allied Irish Banks, p.l.c. is an agent of AIB Insurance Services Limited in relation to provision of general insurance products. AIB Home Insurance is exclusively underwritten by AXA Insurance Ltd. AIB Insurance Services Limited and Allied Irish Banks, p.l.c. are regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.