Household Contents Insurance [Hausratversicherung]
Household Insurance
What is it and what does it cover?
Household contents insurance — Hausratversicherung — covers household items.
Every person in the home will have something valuable. For example, books, a record collection, a computer, a TV ... everything you bought can be lost — very quickly. A broken water pipe can destroy expensive furniture, or burglars might steal small valuable things.
In addition, there is fire, lightning, storms, and other natural hazards that can damage household property.
It is against such risks that household contents insurance (Hausratversicherung) protects.
Who needs household contents insurance?
To the question: "Who needs household contents insurance?" — you can answer almost everyone.
Household contents insurance is part of the necessary insurance coverage in Germany.
It is also recommended to have financial protection such as:
Car liability insurance (Haftpflichtversicherung);
Occupational disability insurance (Berufsunfähigkeitsversicherung);
Retirement provision insurance (Altersvorsorge).
Only those who do not value their property can do without household contents insurance.
Household insurance can be interesting even for students, as not only household items are insured but also, for example, a laptop in class or in the car.
What is included in the concept of "household items"
The insurance covers almost all items in a house or apartment, provided they are located in a residential or utility room insured under the policy.
For insurance of items in private houses, outbuildings are also considered insured locations under certain conditions. For example, if a thief breaks a lock or door, this is covered by the household insurance. An attempted break-in counts even if nothing was stolen. Vandalism is also considered an insured event.
Items located on the property grounds are usually not insured under the basic policy.
Insurance companies usually do not compensate for damage or theft of items in the garden or on the balcony, with a low value of up to 500 euros depending on the insurance. More expensive garden furniture is insured if stored in a lockable room after use.
To have full protection for such items, consider a policy of a higher class.
What else counts as household items
Various types of floating vehicles (canoes, rowboats, or folding boats) if stored in a house, basement, or shed;
Fixed items in the house or on the balcony (e.g., satellite dishes or awnings);
Garden tools (lawnmowers and other equipment);
Toy vehicles;
(Insurance companies may require certain valuables to be kept in a safe). The concept of value also includes checkbooks, jewelry, handwoven carpets, artworks, and antiques.
Exceptions and risks that are (not) covered by household contents insurance
Household contents insurance mainly covers risks of damage or destruction caused by fire, lightning, water flooding, storms or hail, as well as theft.
Important. Those fearing floods, landslides, or avalanches should insure these risks separately. Exceptions also apply to damage caused by accidents or war.
Reimbursement amount
The total compensation value for damages is easy to calculate by knowing the size of the living area.
The general rule in the UK is usually a compensation sum of 650 euros per square meter of living space.
For example, for an apartment of 70 square meters, the insurance sum would be 45,500 euros. 650 euros is a fixed rate. If the calculation is based on the area size, then the insurance company will pay only 650 euros per square meter in case of damage.
This is a disadvantage of this compensation calculation method. The insurance company will pay a maximum of 45,500 euros for a 70-square-meter apartment.
Another option for determining the marginal cost of insurance coverage is to know the value of your property and take out a policy based on the total value of expensive items.
Recommendation!
The compensation value for household contents insurance should be reviewed from time to time.
New expensive devices may appear in the household. Therefore, household contents insurance is one of those types of insurance that should be regularly checked.
Cost of reimbursements
It is hard to say the exact cost of household insurance. Premiums depend on many factors. Insurance companies have different approaches to risk accounting.
The cost depends on the location of the apartment or house, the construction materials of the property, the insured's marital status, local theft statistics, etc.
What to do in case of damage or theft
As mentioned above, this type of insurance covers damage and theft.
Theft
The horror of every traveler to find their apartment robbed upon return. Valuables are gone. But the upset and disappointment can be compensated by insurance.
To not lose insurance coverage, you must immediately report the theft to the police. Then you need to make a so-called stolen goods list with all stolen items (Stehlgutliste).
Stehlgutliste
The list must contain descriptions of the items and their values, preferably invoices or confirmed receipts.
Insurance companies do not give much time to prepare it. Therefore, it is recommended to prepare a list of valuable items in advance, even when choosing coverage. It can be digitized and stored in a cloud storage. After compiling, the total value of items will be clear, and quick access to the list will be possible. In case of an insured event, you will only need to verify exactly what was stolen.
In 2008, the Cologne High Court ruled: "the stolen goods list must be submitted immediately, without unjustified delay."
The deadline for submitting the list is not specified anywhere. Insurance companies usually request the list within a few days. There have been cases where delays caused refusal of insurance payments.
Providing the list promptly helps police start investigations faster and prevents insurance companies from suspecting fraud by the insured.
Damage
In case of damage, a simple damage report describing what happened and what was damaged is sufficient. The deadline for submitting the report varies from a few days to a week depending on UK requirements.
Negligence
The rule: the insured must always behave so that the damage is minimized.
For example, after theft, it turns out that the front door was left unlocked.
Most likely, the insurer will refuse to pay for stolen goods fully or partially. In such cases, the insured will receive only part of the lost item's value.
For example, the court rejected a claim for compensation for stolen items from a car for household insurance where the car was opened by criminals without hacking via radio signal.
Some insurance offers pay tariffs or guaranteed sums even if negligence is proven. These tend to be more expensive.
Natural hazards
Anyone living in a flood-risk area can consider extending coverage to so-called natural hazards. These include risks such as floods, landslides, and avalanches.
Many homeowners refuse natural disaster insurance, thinking they won’t be affected. Only 45% of homeowners have this type of insurance. There is ongoing discussion about making natural hazard protection mandatory.
What insurance protects against floods?
For financial protection against damage caused by floods and heavy rain, a so-called elemental damage insurance (Elementarschadenversicherung) is required, which is a special additional insurance (spezielle Zusatzversicherung).
It can be issued combined with residential building insurance (Wohngebäudeversicherung) or household contents insurance (Hausratversicherung), which usually only covers damage caused by hurricanes and hail.
Wohngebäudeversicherung helps with damage to the house — therefore it is relevant for homeowners. Household contents insurance, on the other hand, covers damage to movable property, i.e., furniture, carpets, or technical equipment, which can also help tenants.
It is important to note that natural disaster insurance does not help if groundwater penetrates masonry from below. The water must come from above. In some cases, this may cause difficulties in providing proof. In doubt, an expert should be consulted.
Partial and full vehicle insurance (Teil-Vollkaskoversicherung) can help with vehicle damage.
How to cancel a household insurance contract
You can cancel the household insurance contract by expressing your will in writing. Reasons for cancellation may be omitted.
The notice period is usually standard for civil agreements — three months before the end of the agreed period. If the cancellation request was not submitted or submitted late, insurance is usually extended by one year.
In some cases, the insurer must agree to cancel the contract without respecting the three-month period. For example, if an insurer raises premiums without changing policy terms.