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Special add-ons that make home insurance offer better protection than standard policies

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Shalini Verma recently purchased an apartment and spent considerable time and energy decorating it the way she wanted. To protect her big investment from unforeseen risks, she decided to go the extra mile and get home insurance policy. For this purpose, she conducted extensive research and found what a standard home insurance policy generally covers. It covers:

• Damages caused by fire hazards and fire breakouts

• Damages caused due to nature-based risks like earthquake, storms and cyclones

• Damages caused by water-related risks like flooding or inundation

• Man-made damages caused during riots and strikes

• Protection against crimes like theft and burglary

• Accidental damages to any fitting or fixture in my home

• Damages caused by breakdown of electric appliances in my home

The insurance company will pay for any damages caused to her home and also cover the cost of alternate accommodation during the period of repair to her main home.

Now at the first glance, all this may seem like a very good deal. It covers many aspects related to her home. The policy will cover damage caused to the building and cover theft risk as well. But as she accounted for her home, its belongings and surroundings, she saw a number of things that a standard insurance policy will not be able to protect.

And to secure the extra items or conditions, there was a need for add-ons. After doing deep research, she found some add-ons that every responsible homeowner must purchase their home insurance for owners plan.

• Cover for jewellery and valuables : Gold and jewellery are among some of the most important possessions of an Indian household and Shalini also owns many that she has collected over the years. As per World Gold Council, Indian households have more than 25,000 tonnes of gold stocked with them. In rural India , housewives have more than 11% of actual gold in the world. Most of this is in the form of jewellery, passed on from generation to generation of women, from mothers to daughters and from mother-in-law to their daughter-in-law. Buying an extra add-on for jewellery and valuables will offer protection for items made of gold, silver and even diamonds. The limit for this is 20 percent of the total sum insured. This means if Shalini got a home insurance of 1 crore, she can add-on insurance of jewellery up to Rs 20 lakhs.

• Cover for portable electronics: Portable electronics are a part and parcel of Shalini’s life. A top-of-the-line mobile phone model can cost more than a lakh. Consider the case of laptop. A good quality, high-end laptop from any company will also cost over a lakh. As more and more people are now working from home, people are also investing in top-of-the-line mobile workstation. Such a high and mobile workstation from any company can cost more than 2 lakhs. All these are important because not only do they cost too much, but the data on them can sometimes perhaps be priceless. Now securing the data can only be done by ensuring regular backup. Portable electronics at home can be insured bythe home policy as an add-on. The condition is that they should not be more than 10 years old.

• Terrorism Cover: Terrorism is a sad reality of modern life. No matter how much governments try, no matter how much the security agencies keep a vigil, we do not live a world that a more transparent, but more opaque. There are those who do not operate with a face, but from the shadows. In such a world, a cost we can pay to make everyone feel safer is insuring our home against terrorist activities. With the terrorism cover add-on, the insurance company will cover home and its contents against any damage caused by terrorist activities.

Conclusion

So, if you want like Shalini to secure your jewellery, bicycle and portable electronics at home, it is advisable that you opt for the necessary add-ons when taking your home insurance policy. This way, you can secure your precious investment – your home from not just man-made or natural disasters, but also its belongings.

Disclaimer- The above information is for illustrative purpose only. For more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.

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