Buying a dream home is the biggest dream one can dream. It requires a lot of hard work, patience and financial planning to be able to afford a home. However, you need to ensure that your beautiful home is protected from unforeseen events. And for that, you must buy home insurance. 

To understand the types and benefits of home insurance in India, continue with the read.

If you possess home insurance, you will not only be insuring the structure of your home but also the extensions of your home like the garage, compound and shed. Today, many policies have been added that allow you to choose add ons like furniture, electronics, and home appliances. Natural disasters can also severely damage your house, so you need to manage your expenses in order to repair your home damage from such unforeseen events. But if you have home insurance, you will not have to face this burden as the coverage against losses caused by such unforeseen events is already covered. In some cases, people tend to take home insurance in India as they worry about the increased theft cases. Home insurance has your back against burglary or theft. 

You might feel like home insurance in India might be an unnecessary expense. Nevertheless, investing in home insurance policies at a competitive premium has become a must. You will later realise that these premium rates were worth paying when you look at the coverage you will get in return. 

Home insurance in India provides you with a certain amount of peace of mind which is priceless. 

Types of home insurance in India 

In today's time, the home insurance market in India has plenty of insurance to offer.

Structural Cover 

Structural cover is the most standard form of insurance policy in India. The policy covers the structure of your house in case it gets severely damaged. The structural cover policy generally covers the cost that you might have to pay at the time of reconstruction or either the pay of repairing the damaged part. Most of the time, this policy is acquired with add-ons that provide you with full coverage to support structures like post boxes, backyards, windows, foundations, garages etc. People need to keep in mind that homes that are not occupied for more than 30 days without prior notice to the insurance company will not be covered. If you claim during this period, the request will be strictly rejected. If you run a business at your home, you are not eligible for such coverage. 

Home content cover 

As the name suggests, the Home Content Cover provides you with coverage of the contents that are present within your house. Mostly it covers furniture, movable and immovable electronic items and jewellery. So the insurance is specially planned to cover the hard-earned valuables. The facility is not limited but is offered to rented homes as well. The tenure of such a policy ranges from 1-to 5 years, and you can buy the insurance based on your requirements. Although there are some exclusions under the Home content insurance, which is listed below-

• Damages done to property caused by war, invasion or some foreign hostilities.

• Damage caused by pollution 

• Damage caused by willful destruction or misappropriation, or negligence 

• Destruction of electrical apparatus because of overuse, excessive pressure, leakage of electricity 

Fire insurance 

The most common source of damage- the fire is covered by this insurance policy. Events that occur from unforeseen disasters and accidents are covered under a fire insurance policy. You also can cover your warehouses with fire insurance policies. The exclusion under the fire insurance policy in India is listed below-

• Fire insurance does not cover damages that are caused by nuclear perils or radioactivity.

• It does not cover damages or losses that are caused by theft incurred indirectly or directly caused by any terrorist activity. 

• It does not cover damage that is caused by war, invasion, civil war etc. 

• It does not cover the loss that is done by a change in temperature, disaster etc.

• No coverage will be provided under the loss of earnings or delay loss.

Eligibility for a fire insurance policy is listed below-

• Any individual/ organisation/bank/institution needs to ensure that their business is safe from an unforeseen event in case of fire. 

• Individuals who possess buildings, furniture and so on

• Any retailer, shopkeeper or godown owners

Theft Cover 

To tackle the situation of a theft case at your home, office, or shop that causes huge financial loss can be covered by theft insurance. But it would be best if you remembered that there is a fine line between theft and burglary. If you are purchasing a theft insurance policy, there are certain things that you need to be well aware of. Like in most cases, damage to jewellery, cash, family members, stealing of certificates, thefts during the war, riots or terrorist activities are not covered, and no compensation is offered. If you wish to claim items or stocks, then you can claim using the premium form. 

Landlord's Cover 

Suppose you wish to have a protective shield against the risks like property damage, liability cost and monetary risk that are associated with tenants living in your protection. In that case, you should opt for Landlord's insurance. This policy also provides you with coverage from fire and theft done to your property. This type of insurance will provide you with peace of mind, take the burden off your shoulders, and protect your property from such losses. 

Tenant's Cover 

Home insurance in India is limited for homeowners but also for renters to protect their investments. Renter's insurance is also known as tenant's insurance. If you are living on rent, then your Landlord has their own insurance policy to cover items like pipes, Appliances and physical criticisms of the building. 

Through thorough research and understanding, you can choose the best home insurance policy that will benefit you deeply. Before going for home insurance, remember to be assured about the following-

• Assets you wish to cover, 

• Who is the owner of those assets you wish to cover 

• According to you, which is the most likely scenario you believe can cause destruction to your home

Read More: Advantages and disadvantages of home insurance​