Consumers comfortable buying home insurance online

85% of consumers are comfortable with researching and buying home insurance online without professional advice, according to a survey by Defaqto.

However, this places a greater onus on people to understand and focus on policy features, rather than price alone, when comparing policies to ensure they arrange cover that meets their needs.

Defaqto’s analysis of the 304 home contents insurance policies on the market found wide variation in the range and level of features that different policies offer.

In particular, there are a number of key features that tend to be optional extras, rather than standard, within policies, including:

Defaqto said these figures demonstrate that it is important for people to consider what they require from a home insurance product and then identify policies that are able to provide the cover that matches their needs, in terms of both standard features and optional extensions of cover.

This is even more critical in the context of Defaqto’s finding that nearly nine in ten people are comfortable with comparing and purchasing home contents insurance without involving either the product provider or an intermediary.

Mike Powell, Defaqto’s insight analyst for general insurance, said: “Our homes and the contents within them are our most valuable assets, and it is therefore important to have appropriate insurance in place to protect them. Our analysis shows that there is wide-ranging variation between policies in terms of how many offer a number of key features as optional extras, rather than as a standard part of the cover. At the same time, we have found that a very high proportion of people are happy to buy home insurance online without advice.

“These two factors taken together highlight the emphasis people need to place on policy features and benefits when shopping around to ensure they arrange appropriate cover.

“Although important, price should not be the primary basis for comparison – after all, buying the cheapest cover available could end up being the most expensive option if it doesn’t provide adequate cover for someone’s home. In particular, if a policy offers a number of key features as optional, but someone disregards them without considering whether they actually need them, their policy could end up falling short. Our Star Ratings for home insurance indicate the level and range of features that different policies offer, helping people compare the options based on the cover included.”