What do I need to know about Home Insurance?
Our Home Insurance policy summary documents (accessible below) briefly outline for you the significant features, benefits, limitations and exclusions of our Home Insurance policies for owner-occupied private houses, holiday home houses and rental home houses. These summaries do not form part of the policy wordings, which you are recommended to read (accessible below) before you arrange insurance cover.
For full details of all our policy covers please refer to our policy documents the Home Insurance page.
What are the Cover Assumptions?
There are a number of cover assumptions that you will need to read carefully and accept before a Home Insurance quotation and/or cover can be confirmed. The cover assumptions for each of our Home Insurance products can be viewed in our policy assumptions.
If you have a question or query relating to any of these cover assumptions that may be material* to your insurance quotation details please call our Dublin-based Customer Service Team on 1890 719 425. (Mon to Fri 9am to 6pm).
(*Material facts are those facts that your insurer would regard as likely to influence the acceptance and assessment of your risk. If you are in any doubt whether certain facts are material you must disclose them.)
What is the policy excess?
Most Home Insurance policies include standard buildings and contents excess amount and/or other excess amounts for specified loss or damage event types. An excess is the amount of any loss or
damage event that you must pay yourself. Our policy summary documents (accessible above) set out for you the excess amounts applicable under our home policies. These cover summaries also state those benefits which are not subject to an excess amount.
Residential Home Cover Excess Amounts: • Standard €250
• Water damage €1,000
• Subsidence damage €1,000
• Unspecified or Specified All risks €100 • Pedal Cycle 75
Holiday Home or Rental Home Excess Amounts: • Standard €500
• Water damage €1,000
Is there a higher Voluntary Excess amount?
It is possible to be voluntarily responsible for an additional increased excess amount, in return for receiving an extra discount off your policy premium. This voluntary additional excess is in addition to the policy excess amounts outlined in the excess amount section above. If you require more information, please call us on 1890 719 425.
Is Wear and Tear covered?
Home Insurance is designed to cover the cost of unexpected losses. It does not cover wear and tear. If your property is not in a good state of repair, your claim may not be paid in full.
How do I insure my Buildings for the correct sum?
It is very important to insure your buildings for the correct sum insured amount. The sum insured must be sufficient to reinstate your buildings should they be completely destroyed by an event
insured. Please bear in mind that the definition of “buildings” under your policy includes not only the basic structure itself. (Please refer to our policy wordings for the definition of “buildings”).
The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland “Rebuilding Cost Guidelines (2014)” are a helpful starting point for estimating the correct buildings sum insured to select.
When seeking a quotation for Home Insurance please ensure that you have chosen an adequate sum insured amount to cover reinstatement of your buildings.
How do I insure my Contents for the correct amount?
Similarly, it is very important to insure your household contents for the correct amount. When seeking a quotation for Home Insurance please ensure that you have chosen an adequate sum insured amount to cover replacement of your household contents as new.
Are there cover restrictions for Unoccupied Residential Houses, Holiday Houses or
Rental Houses?
Home Insurance policies will restrict the cover provided when the home is left unoccupied for a certain length of time, e.g. over 35 consecutive days. Please refer to our Home Insurance policy
summaries and policy wordings (accessible above) for the cover restrictions that apply if your home, holiday home or rental home is left unoccupied.
In particular, please note the 2 conditions that you must comply with from 1st November to 31st March inclusive each year if you insure a holiday home with us:
(1) A responsible person must be appointed to supervise and regularly* check the property, and (2) The water must be turned off and the water system drained.
Do I need Home Insurance?
Whilst Home Insurance is not compulsory, if you have a mortgage then your lender may insist on you securing buildings cover as a condition of the loan. This is simply to ensure that if an event occurs that results in the home being destroyed or severely damaged the rebuilding costs will be met, thus safeguarding their financial investment.
If you own a modern self-contained apartment, your management company will probably arrange the buildings insurance cover for you, but you would need to check with them that this is the case. So, if you own and occupy your own self-contained apartment, you may only need to arrange
“contents only” insurance cover.
Thus finding the money to replace everything following a loss involving buildings and/or contents would be a huge worry if you did not have adequate Home Insurance cover. SuperValu home policies can provide you with that security and peace of mind.
What exactly needs to be covered?
a) Buildings
In respect of buildings insurance you need to consider the home in its entirety. That is, the structure of the home itself, including permanent fixtures and fittings, any outbuildings, garages, driveways, patios, paths, fences and gates. In addition, you may need to include permanent swimming pools, tennis courts, and fixed fuel tanks, underground service pipes and cables for which you are legally responsible. Consideration must also be given to the cost of removal of debris, and of professional fees.
b) Household contents
Contents comprise everything that you could take with you if you were to move home. It is advisable to go through every room in your home making an inventory of contents including items in cupboards and wardrobes. In addition, you may also have items in your loft or attic, your garage, or garden shed that may need to be included under your contents sum insured. c) Optional covers.
If you have any individual “high-value” portable items that you wish to insure while they are away from your home, you may need to purchase optional all risks cover on a specified or an unspecified item basis. In addition, if you wish to insure a specified pedal cycle, you will need to include pedal cycle cover in your Home Insurance quotation.
How do I calculate how much cover I need?
The market value of a house or an apartment is dependent on many factors, including locality, local amenities and a range of other factors of relevance to the prospective purchaser of the property. The sum insured required for buildings insurance however is related to the current rebuilding costs required to reinstate the property should it be completely destroyed by a fire or other insured event. The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland “Rebuilding Cost Guidelines (2014)” are a helpful starting point for estimating the correct buildings sum insured to select.
Often however, it may be advisable to engage the independent services of a Chartered Surveyor or a Professional Valuer to advise you on the buildings sum insured appropriate for your property. The sum insured amount you select for your household contents should cater for replacement of your contents as new.
If you already have Home Insurance cover in place, you should check your sum insured amounts on a regular basis (at least annually) to ensure that they remain up to date and are adequate to reinstate your buildings and replace your contents.
If you have unspecified or specified items insured under optional All Risks cover, you need to review your list of specified items on a regular basis too. For high-value items of jewellery, for example, you should keep your valuation certificates (required for any individual item valued over €5,000) up to date and in safe storage so that if an individual item is lost or damaged, you have the relevant evidence to hand to prove the value of that item.
It is highly recommended that you also retain photographic evidence for any high value items that you own and have insured.
Do I need to take into account inflation?
Inflation Protection
To protect you against the effects of inflation, your Buildings and Contents sum insured, may be
increased in line with an appropriate index* when your policy falls due for renewal. If we do increase your sums insured at renewal time, we will inform you.
*For Buildings, we will consult both the House Rebuilding Cost Index prepared by the Department of the Environment - http://www.environ.ie/ and the latest guide to house rebuilding costs issued by the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland - http://www.scsi.ie/.
*For Contents, we will consult relevant sections of the Consumer Price Index prepared by the Central Statistics Office - http://www.cso.ie/.
However, we strongly recommend that you review your sums insured on a regular basis (at least annually) to ensure that they remain adequate to meet your insurance protection requirements.
What type of policies does SuperValu offer?
SuperValu provide Home Insurance policies for (1) Owner-occupied private dwelling houses or self-contained modern apartment dwellings; (2) Houses owned and used or let out by their owners as holiday homes and (3) Individual private dwelling houses rented out as a single dwelling unit by their owners to a tenant under a rental agreement.
Our policy summary documents briefly outline for you the significant features, benefits, limitations and exclusions of our Home Insurance policies for owner-occupied private houses, holiday home houses and rental home houses.
All our policy summaries are available on our home webpage.
Can I get instant home insurance?
There are 2 quick and easy ways to arrange Home Insurance cover with us:
1. By Phone – If you have obtained a home quotation online, you can arrange cover over the phone by Calling our Customer Service Team in Dublin on 1890 719 425 between 9am and 6pm Mon-Fri. Your will need your credit card number to hand and your SuperValu Car Policy Number (if you wish to avail of our 20% Home Insurance discount for existing SuperValu Car Policyholders). Real Rewards customers will also need to have their Rewards card number to hand to ensure they benefit from additional discounts and vouchers given to Real Rewards customers.
If you require optional All Risks cover for any high-value items and/or Pedal Cycles, you will require the relevant identification description and identification numbers to hand, when you request cover. Also, Valuations are required for any item over €5,000 and security conditions will need to be
followed for items of Jewellery over €10,000 in value.
Can I pay my Home Insurance by instalments online?
Yes, you can but an initial “up-front” deposit payment by Credit Card or Debit Card is required.
Do I get a discount for being a SuperValu real Rewards Customer?
Yes, if you are a Real Rewards customer and provide us with your Real Rewards number when you purchase your policy, we will give you an extra 10% discount both online and over the phone. Now we believe that is very fair.
Are my personal items covered when I take them away from home?
Yes they can be but only under our Home Cover product for residential homes, once you have purchased “optional all risks cover” on the items concerned. This cover option however, is not available under Holiday Home or Rental Home policies.
Our Home Cover policy wording under “Section 3 – Your Optional all risks Cover”, sets out for you the cover provided, the excess amount applicable and the cover restrictions and limitations that will apply.
What insurance cover is provided for my PC or Laptop?
Under our Home Cover Plus policy, cover is provided automatically for accidental damage to
Personal Computers used for personal use only within the home up to a limit of €1,000. This cover is subject to the standard contents excess amount of €250 per claim.
If you require cover for a Personal Computer valued at more than €1,000, you will need to take out optional All Risks cover on a specified basis for the computer concerned. The All Risks excess of €100 per claim would apply to this Computer item instead of the standard contents excess amount of
If you require cover for a Laptop Computer away from your home you will need to take out optional All Risks cover on a specified basis for the Laptop concerned. The All Risks excess of €100 per claim would apply to the Laptop item instead of the standard contents excess amount of €250 per claim. To arrange cover on a Laptop, in addition to providing the sum insured amount you require, you will also need to have the Laptop make/model description and the serial number to hand.
Our Home Cover policy wording under “Section 3 – Your Optional all risks Cover”, sets out for you the cover provided, the excess amount applicable and the cover restrictions and limitations that will apply.
Am I covered by my Home Insurance if I work from home?
Our Home Cover Plus contents policy section automatically provides cover for Home office equipment up to €3,000 ( under Home Cover Premium limit increased to €6,000) used for occasional clerical work at home and where no business clients visit the home. Please call us if you require your home cover to be extended for any business use other than as described above.
Are the contents of my shed and/or garage covered by my home insurance?
Yes (including optional accidental damage cover, where this cover option has been purchased). The cover limit for total contents in locked domestic outbuildings is up to €3,000.
Our Policy summary documents (accessible above) outline the cover limits and excess amounts applicable.
Is insurance cover provided for items in my garden?
Yes, we will cover you, up to an amount of €750, for loss or damage by an insured cause, other than by Accidental Damage (irrespective of whether cover is indicated on Your Schedule), to Contents in the open within the boundaries of your Buildings.
See Our Home Cover Plus policy wording “Section 2 – Your Contents Cover”
“Contents in the open” outlines the cover provided. Loss or damage to bicycles in the open is not covered and the standard policy excess amount of €250 applies to every claim.
Can I get Home Insurance for my house that I rent out to tenants?
Yes you can. Our Rental Home Cover Home Insurance product may provide you with the cover you require. Our Rental Home policy summary (accessible above) briefly outlines for you the significant features, benefits, limitations and exclusions of our Rental Home Insurance product. Our Rental Home policy wording (also accessible above) sets out the cover we provide in detail.
If friends come to stay for the weekend, are their belongings covered by my home
insurance?
Yes, cover for Visitors and Guests’ property is included under our Home Cover Plus policy. Loss of or damage to the property of visitors and guests other than Paying Guests by an insured cause is included up to a limit of €1,000 of any one loss. (If you purchase Home Cover Premium, this cover limit is increased to €3,000).
See Our Home Cover Plus policy wording “Section 2 – Your Contents Cover” Visitors and Guests’ Property” outlines the cover provided.
My child’s school has lent him a musical instrument, is this covered by my home
insurance?
Only if you have signed an agreement with the school to insure the item i.e. you have accepted legal responsibility for the musical instrument. It may be the case however, that the school has put in place insurance cover for the item. You would need to verify this fact with the school, before making any decision to insure the item.
If you are required to insure the musical instrument and your child takes it out of the home you will need to purchase optional All Risks cover on the item under your Home Cover insurance policy. You will need to provide us with a description and model/serial number for the musical instrument. If its value exceeds €5,000 a valuation certificate will be required.
Can I opt to pay a voluntary excess?
Yes, you can. There are two additional voluntary increased excess amount options available to choose from, €500 or €1,000. If you decide to accept one of these additional voluntary excess options, you will be responsible for the increased voluntary excess amount you have chosen in addition to the standard excess amounts applicable under the Home Insurance policy purchased. In return you will receive an additional discount off your premium.
Our Customer Service team on 1890 719 425 (between 9am and 6pm Mon-Fri) will be glad to provide you with a revised Home Insurance quotation based on either of the increased voluntary excess amounts outlined above.
Our policy summary documents and policy wordings (accessible above) set out the standard excess amounts applicable for events insured. Please study these documents carefully before deciding
whether accepting an increased voluntary excess amount is appropriate for you.
Is it safe to input my credit card details online?
Yes, we use the latest in encryption technology through SSL which guarantees that any personal information or credit card details that you have input on our website is protected. Online purchase could not be made safer.
If, however, you do not feel comfortable with entering your card details online, please call our
What if I don’t see what I want?
If you don’t see what you want on our website, please call our Dublin-based Customer Service team on 1890 719 425 (between 9am and 6pm Mon-Fri) to discuss your individual Home Insurance requirements.
What does Building Sum Insured mean?
‘Sum insured’ is the amount it would cost to rebuild the entire property, and is not the same as its market value which may be greater or sometimes lower. If you are moving house, your surveyor should be able to assess the sum insured for you.
What does Contents Sum Insured mean?
Contents sum insured refers to the amount of insurance you require and should reflect the amount of money it would cost to replace all of your contents on a new for old basis at today’s prices.
Do I need to tell my insurance company if my property is undergoing renovations?
Yes you do. Under your duty of disclosure you should tell us immediately if the nature of your home changes in a way that might affect our attitude to the cover provided – for example during the
building of an extension or the re-roofing of the property with non-standard materials.
Other examples of information you need to tell us about include if the use of your home changes, such as it becoming let out to tenants, used as a holiday home, becoming unoccupied for more than 35 consecutive days, or being used for any business purpose.
If you are in any doubt as to whether a change is material, please notify us on 1890 719 425 (between 9am and 6pm Mon-Fri).
Can I get Home Insurance for my house that I use as a Holiday Home?
Yes you can. Our Holiday Home Cover Home Insurance product may provide you with the cover you require. Our Holiday Home policy summary (accessible above) briefly outlines for you the significant features, benefits, limitations and exclusions of our Holiday Home Insurance product. Our Holiday Home
policy wording (also accessible above) sets out the cover we provide in detail.
You can call our Customer Service Team in Dublin on 1890 719 425 between 9am and 6pm Mon-Fri, if you need to discuss your Holiday Home Insurance requirements in more detail or you may apply for a quotation online.
What happens if I need to make a claim?
Home Insurance Claims
What happens after I call?
After you have notified us of a claim, we will issue a Claim Form for completion & signing. You can also download the relevant form here http://www.aig.ie/claims
When should I register a claim?
It’s very important that claims are registered quickly. You must register any claim as soon as
reasonably possible (and certainly no later than 7 days). If you do not, we may not be able to pay your claim. If you need to make a claim, please either write with a brief description of your claim or phone our underwriters at:
AIG Claims Service 30 North Wall Quay
International Financial Services Centre Dublin 1
Phone: 01 8599700
To help us prevent fraudulent claims, AIG will store the insured person’s personal details on computer and may transfer them to a third party.
What levels of cover are available?
Home Insurance from SuperValu offers you great ways to insure your house. You can choose a level of cover to suit your needs
• Plus - includes “essential” covers, and extra benefits, at a competitive price.
• Premium - offers our widest range of cover benefits (available through our call centre).
What Optional Extra Covers are available?
• Accidental Damage - provides wider protection to buildings and to contents in the Private House.
• All Risks Cover for Your Personal Belongings and Jewellery - You may insure such items on either an unspecified basis or on a specified basis.
• Pedal Cycles - specified pedal cycles can be insured up to €1,000 per pedal cycle. Serial numbers for each pedal cycle are required, and the total value that can be covered is up to €3,000.
• Personal Accident - you can add personal accident benefits of €13,000
• Legal Expenses - you can add a legal expenses cover benefit of up to €65,000. • Identity Theft - you can add an identity theft cover benefit of up to €10,000.
What No Claims discount is available?
Up to 30% No Claims Discount
At SuperValu, we reward our Customers who remain claims free under their Home policy. Our current No Claim Discount Scale is as follow:
• 10% if 1 year claims free • 20% if 2 years claims free • 30% if 3 years claims free
• 30% if 3 years or more claims free
What is the Emergency Home Assist Helpline?
1850 924 012. At SuperValu we provide an emergency 24 hour Home Assist emergency helpline which can provide you with a connection to an approved network of repairers (plumbers, electricians, glaziers, locksmiths, roofers etc.) to help alleviate the effects of a loss, as quickly as possible.
Helpful Information
Please refer to our policy documents provide you with important information.
Do You Require Help Arranging Rental Home Insurance?
Our Dublin based Customer Service Team are available Mon to Fri from 9am to 6pm, just Call us on 1890 719 425.
Important Information
Our Rental Home Policy Summary sets out the significant features, benefits, limitations and
exclusions of our rental Home Insurance policy. It also outlines significant cover assumptions that you need to read and accept before proceeding.
Rental Home quotations are valid for a period of 30 days from the time you obtain a confirmed quotation online or from our Customer Service Team in Dublin.
Rental Home Cover Excess Amounts
(The amount of any claim you must pay. Some covers benefits are not subject to an excess. Please see cover summary).
• Standard €500
• Water or Subsidence damage €1,000
Rental Home No Claims Discount Scale
At SuperValu, we reward our Customers who remain claims free under their Rental Home policy. Our current No Claim Discount Scale is as follow:
• 10% if 1 year claims free • 20% if 2 years claims free • 30% if 3 years claims free
• 30% if 3 years or more claims free
Do You Require Help Arranging Holiday Home Insurance?
Our Dublin based Customer Service Team are available Mon to Fri from 9am to 6pm, just Call us on 1890 719 425.
What is the Holiday Home No Claims Discount Scale?
At SuperValu, we reward our Customers who remain claims free under their Holiday Home policy. Our current No Claim Discount Scale is as follow:
• 10% if 1 year claims free • 20% if 2 years claims free • 30% if 3 years claims free
• 30% if 3 years or more claims free Important Information
Our Holiday Home Policy Summary sets out the significant features, benefits, limitations and
exclusions of our holiday Home Insurance policy. It also outlines significant cover assumptions that you need to read and accept before proceeding.
Holiday Home quotations are valid for a period of 30 days from the time you obtain a confirmed quotation online or from our Customer Service Team in Dublin.
What are the Holiday Home Cover Excess Amounts?
(The amount of any claim you must pay. Some covers benefits are not subject to an excess. Please see cover summary).
• Standard €500
• Water or Subsidence damage €1,000
