Home insurance for extended trips.

For anything out of the ordinary I would give the task to a firm of insurance brokers who are experts in the field and ask them to source an insurance policy to meet the particular situation. I have heard people suggest Adrian Flux as an example of that sort of insurance broker, dealing they say with about 30 insurance companies, but I have no personal experience of them, and I only mention them as an example of a firm of brokers.

The club insurance are able to quote for this with reliable companies. I have not heard of the firm you quote and would do some research to try and establish their claims service as that is the thing you need when things go wrong. It is no use saving a few pounds on the premium if they fail you when you need them.

In simple terms I assume you did not buy tbe cheapest house so why do you feel the cheapest insurance is best without further research. In life you tend to get what you pay for.

PS. Kjell. Your Intelligent Insurance company gets far better on line reviews than the firm of brokers I had heard of, and I imagine they too are brokers, placing business with bigger companies. 

The club insurance are able to quote for this with reliable companies. I have not heard of the firm you quote and would do some research to try and establish their claims service as that is the thing you need when things go wrong. It is no use saving a few pounds on the premium if they fail you when you need them.

In simple terms I assume you did not buy tbe cheapest house so why do you feel the cheapest insurance is best without further research. In life you tend to get what you pay for.

We have not made any decision as yet, and they were not actually the cheapest.

Research is still in progress.

PS. Kjell. Your Intelligent Insurance company gets far better on line reviews than the firm of brokers I had heard of, and I imagine they too are brokers, placing business with bigger companies. 

Yes, they are brokers rather than insurers, as is the other company.

Policies available through these 2 companies appear to be underwritten by AXA and Lloyds Syndicates.

Kjell. It sounds to me that you have made a good find. Bravo. 

Possibly, but the hike in the excess after 60 days unoccupancy could be a deal-breaker as they push it up to £1000 on each of buildings and contents.

OH has got an on-line quote through the Club, which was also competitive, but she will need to ring them to query a couple of things.

The main one being that according to the policy wording our house may not be of "standard construction" as it is timber frame, which is very common up here.

If this results in a much higher premium, that could be a deal-breaker.  I find it odd that there was no option to specify the exact  construction type, instead they have made a series of assumptions.

The standard maximum  unoccupancy offered was 90 days, so will also need to check how this works and whether a longer period is available.

In this case the policy offered was with ABC Insurance, a division of LV.

The C&CC are quite competitive on this kind of insurance.

peedee

If you are spending in the region of £1000 for household insurance it is likely to be worthwhile using a broker to place the insurance for you. Make sure though that you source a reliable broker who has specialisation in domestic cover and will actually have proper market knowledge.

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