What does the deductible include in a homeowners insurance policy?
When buying a home insurance policy, the "deductible" always comes up as well. With every insurance policy you can have a deductible. A deductible means that in case of damage, a portion of the damage is for your own account.
Mandatory and voluntary deductibles
There is a difference between a mandatory and a voluntary deductible.
With home insurance there is usually no obligatory deductible excess. If there is a mandatory deductible, it is often an amount around €100 or €150.
A number of insurers allow you to choose your own deductible. With a voluntary deductible, you can choose how high your deductible is. Here, the higher your deductible, the lower the premium.
You should remember to keep in mind that you will pay the deductible again with each claim. What you should also think about is whether you can easily take care of the deductible for your own account in case of damage. Even when this happens several times a year. To what extent is this feasible for you and does it outweigh the premium discount you get with a higher deductible?
A mandatory deductible
In some situations, the insurer imposes a mandatory deductible.
This happens in the cases below, among others:
- Storm damage
Storm damage is bad enough, of course, and you want the damage caused by the storm to be repaired as quickly as possible. With a home insurance policy, you pay a deductible for storm damage before you are compensated for the damage. Usually this amount is set at €150. You can increase or decrease the amount yourself. There is a higher deductible for storm damage than for most other damages. In general, you pay two thousandths of the amount for which you have insured your home as a deductible. This amount is usually between €200,- and €500,- but varies by insurer. - Living in a big city
If you live in a big city, you usually pay a mandatory deductible of €225 in case of theft or burglary. According to insurers, you are more likely to suffer damage if you live in a big city. - Damage caused by your own actions
Only when you have an All-risk building insurance, you pay a mandatory deductible if you unexpectedly caused damage through your own fault. The excess is usually between €50 and €100.
How is the deductible settled?
Suppose you have a €2,000 damage to the back door and window frame due to a burglary. If you have an excess of €250, the insurer will only pay part of the bill for repairing. You can pay the rest to the repairer yourself. Or the insurer does pay the bill for repair in full, and then recovers the €250 from you.
So ideally, go for a home insurance policy with no deductible. Comparing home insurance policies will keep your premium low.
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