As the name suggests, accidental damage insurance covers accidental damage. This is damage to your property that is not the result of a specific event, such as a fire or storm. However, not all home insurance policies include accidental damage as standard and those that do have certain exclusions.
If you have suffered property damage as the result of an accident, here are some things to consider.
How does your insurance policy define accidental damage insurance?
Your policy documents will provide generic details of what you are covered for, so it’s not always easy to understand if you can make a claim. If you are in doubt, please call PCLA on 028 9581 5318. We have helped many clients make successful accidental damage claims.
You should also be aware that accidental damage insurance cover varies between insurance companies and even insurance policies. Please don’t make the assumption that accidental damage cover is included with your policy. You will also need to make sure that you have accidental damage cover included with both your contents and buildings insurance policies.
What’s the difference between accidental damage contents insurance and accidental damage buildings insurance?
Buildings insurance accidental damage
The purpose of buildings insurance is to protect you against the cost of repairing or rebuilding your home if it’s damaged. It applies to the physical structure of your home and any permanent fixtures and fittings. Accidental damage insurance adds additional cover for damage to your property or its fixtures and fittings.
What are examples of accidental damage buildings insurance claims?
This will depend on your specific policy. However, the following are usually covered:
- Broken glass in windows, doors & greenhouses.
- Damage to ceramic hobs and ceramic tops of fixed cookers
- If you have damaged your bathroom suite.
- You might have accidentally cut through cables or pipes or damaged a drain.
- Accidentally putting your foot through a ceiling or putting a hole in the wall
- Children playing can also cause accidental damage to your property.
- Broken locks or keys
Even if you have accidental damage cover, not all damage will be covered. Typically, you are not covered for accidental damage to gates, hedges and fences or any damage caused by vermin. Similarly, you won’t be covered against wear and tear. If you are in any doubt, please call PCLA on 028 9581 5318 and ask how we can help with your home insurance claim.
Contents insurance accidental damage
The purpose of accidental damage insurance is to ease the burden of costly repairs or replacement costs when an accident occurs. For home contents insurance, AXA states: “We will pay for accidental damage or loss of contents while they are in the home” but you must have purchased accidental damage.
Don’t make the assumption that accidental damage cover is included with your policy. According to Defaqto only 21% of contents insurance policies included cover for accidental damage. You’ll also only be able to make a claim if you are present at the time the damage was caused. If you are in doubt, please call PCLA on 028 9581 5318. We have helped many clients make successful accidental damage claims.
What does contents insurance with accidental damage cover?
Accidental damage provides cover for damage which was unforeseen or unintentional. If you have a young family or are accident prone, this type of additional cover would give you peace of mind.
What are examples of accidental damage insurance claims?
The classic example is spilling a glass of red wine on a cream carpet. However, there are many other examples including:
- Did your TV fall off the wall?
- Have you dropped your mobile phone or laptop onto your kitchen floor?
- Have your kids poured their drinks over your sofa?
Sometimes you need to make a claim against both your buildings and contents insurance. For example, you might have accidentally drilled into a water pipe. This could cause damage to the structure of your home and also water damage to your carpets.
Remember, you can usually only make a claim for accidental damage, if you have taken out additional cover and were home at the time. However, please call PCLA and ask one of our expert claims assessors for free advice about your insurance claim.
What are the benefits of accidental damage insurance?
The primary benefit of accidental damage insurance is peace of mind. It’s usually an optional extra when you take out your home insurance policy. That small additional cost will be worth it if you have a young family or you are a bit clumsy. If you don’t have accidental damage cover, you will have to pay the replacement cost of any accidental damage caused in your home.
What is not covered by accidental damage cover?
It’s worth keeping in mind that this specific type of insurance only provides cover for accidental damage.
Accidental damage added to buildings insurance might not cover the following if the damage or loss was caused:
- by frost
- faulty workmanship, or by using defective materials
- Vermin;
- By pets
- by mechanical or electrical breakdown or failure;
- to gates, hedges and fences;
You might also have heard people talk about ‘wear and tear’. If the damage has been caused by a lack of maintenance or has occurred over a long period of time, then you are unlikely to be covered.
Do you need help making an accidental damage claim?
If you need to make an accidental damage insurance claim, speak to PCLA today on 028 9581 5318. We can help assess the value of the damage or loss and deal with the insurance company and loss adjuster on your behalf. If you’re considering making a claim, ask PCLA to explain the terms of your policy so you understand what you can claim for.
As professional independent loss assessors, PCLA have over 20 years experience managing home insurance claims for clients. We provide free advice, so it’s always worth giving us a call to find out if we can help you.
