Insurance is something I feel quite strongly about. Having experience in the industry meant I’ve heard plenty of claims stories. Obviously I can’t divulge, however I will say I will now NEVER even go for a short car journey without a seatbelt and I’m VERY careful walking to/from the top deck on buses. Student contents insurance is also very important to me. Whilst I’ve not actually had anything important go missing, I know friends who have had houses broken into – and probably most beneficial for me is the accidental damage cover.
What
Put simply, student contents insurance covers the bits and pieces you bring to university against loss, theft or damage. Thanks to the joys of a long distance relationship I travel a lot on trains, so I always make sure my policy covers loss/theft of suitcases whilst traveling too.
Why
Because unfortunately loss, theft and damage does happen. This might be accidentally dropping water over your laptop, smashing your phone into a puddle (guilty), or even if your university halls catch fire (true story – it happened at my university whilst I was away on placement). I know people who have claimed after all their food and kitchen equipment disappeared from their kitchen. I know ground floor rooms have bee emptied when the occupier nips to the toilet. I myself have had vouchers taken from my post.
How
There’s a couple of options regarding how to insurance your stuff. The easiest is to see if your parents can extend their policy to cover an additional address. The ‘cross your fingers’ approach is to just go with the insurance provided by your accommodation – which is likely to be limited to only pay out when things like a fire cause damage, and possibly only covers a small amount. This option is definitely not sensible when you are living in privately rented houses! However in a private house it may be possible to chip in with friends and get a whole house polices. However in my opinion the best way is to get specialist student contents insurance. This is more likely to cover all possible eventualities, and you’ll virtually definitely get the cover you need.
Tips
- Check everything is covered. I’ve found I have to insure my camera as a separate gadet so it’s covered when I take it out and about.
- If you’re privately renting its often worth adding in accidental damage cover – it may help protect your deposit if something does happen.
- Double check the policy limit and excess, to make sure you know exactly what’s covered and what you need to pay.
*Sponsored post, all opinions are my own. Make sure to check out Bobatoo’s guide to student contents insurance!
Do/did you have student contents insurance? Did you ever have to use it?
