Global Market Reviews

When you are looking around for a house to buy, the cost of home insurance is not always the most important thought on your mind. Even if you do think about it, the most common consideration is the state of repair and how easy it would be to repair or rebuild should there be a fire. This confidence continues when buying the insurance policy. You sign up for an all-perils policy and take the words at face value. If you are insured against all perils, that surely means you can sleep peacefully at night. Except that confidence is too often misplaced. Looking around the US right now, it’s one of the coldest winters on record with heavier snow fall than usual. When the weather warms, the melting snow will flood into the rivers… That’s a joy to come. So let’s list the most common events that damage your home: landslides, subsidence, floods, hurricanes and tornadoes. Live in the wrong states and we add earthquakes. Now take out your policy and check that exclusion clause. You will see some mysterious phrases like “surface water”. That excludes every possible source of water no matter whether it comes in as a high tide, wind surge, rain or local sewage drains backing up. When you add up everything not included, even the top-of-the-range policies from the supposedly best insurers often end up as covering rebuilding costs from fire and wind only – that’s wind and not tornadoes or hurricanes.

To protect yourself, you need to start early in the buying process. Start with simple questions: has there been any accidents in this area? Is there a heavy clay content in the soil? Is this an earthquake zone? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, you should get a geology report before going any further. Mining subsidence is a real problem in some areas. Soil that expands when wet and contracts when dry can wreck the foundations of your home – the Department of Agriculture estimates that up to 25% of properties in the US are at risk of damage. We all know about earthquakes. If your proposed property is on a slope, what’s the risk of a landslide or rock fall? When we move on to flood risks, every community is at risk – check out the addresses of potential properties through http://www.floodsmart.gov/ which is run by Homeland Security’s FEMA. It also gives you estimates of the likely premiums for areas at higher risk. Read the rest of this entry »

The one thing most likely to impress your insurance company is that you have taken a number of simple steps to reduce the risk of a burglar entering your home. The result? A reduction in the premium is guaranteed. This can be relatively minor things like deadlocks on the doors or, if there are real risks of robbery or kidnapping, the more expensive installation of a panic room. As with all decisions, it’s a balance between the costs of the work and the benefits in the reduction of premiums. Finally, even if you cannot afford a full alarm system, there are cheap ways of protecting your property.

Protection outside your home

Burglars always assess a target before attempting entry. They prefer properties where the trees and bushes offer somewhere to hide. So, cut back the lower branches of any trees and prune all bushes. Keep good sight lines to the windows and doors from the road. Depending on the size of your yard and the amount of street lighting, consider the cost of installing external lights and leave them on at night. You should also remove anything like a tree or trellis that could be used to climb up to the second storey. Similarly, secure any ladders in a locked shed or garage. As a deterrent, plant bushes with thorns close to the house and in front of the windows. The next step up in cost are motion sensors to sweep the yard and the areas in front of the windows and doors.

Protection inside your home

Burglars usually find it easier to enter your home through a window rather than a door. Go to your local hardware store, buy a set of standard locks and fit them to all the ground-floor windows, and any windows on the second floor that can be accessed from a porch or garage roof. There are separate types of lock for sliding windows. Never hang the keys on a nail next to the windows. There are two dangers. The burglar can simply break one pane, reach for the key and open the window.

Some burglars try to look like a guest by entering through the front door. Always fit solid wood doors into a strong frame. Anything less can easily be kicked in. Similarly, doors with decorative glass panels are vulnerable. Either fit plastic panels or a grill. Ensure there is no significant gap between the door and the frame to reduce the risk of a pry bar forcing it open. Similarly, never fit the door with the hinges showing. It’s too easy to slip out the pins. As with sliding windows, take effective measures to prevent a burglar from lifting doors off their tracks. Read the rest of this entry »