illustration of house

Buildings and contents cover

| 13.11.2023

When you're looking to make a claim, the first thing you'll want to check is what you are and aren't covered for.

We've listed the details below, but you can view our policy documents:


WHAT DO WE MEAN BY 'BUILDINGS'

When we use the word ‘buildings’, we mean the structure of your home, including any fixtures and fittings. We also mean:

  • Garages and outbuildings, such as summer houses, sheds and greenhouses, as long as they are fully enclosed. Just to be clear, outbuildings doesn’t include structures that are designed to be open on any side, such as carports or gazebos.
  • Garden walls, gates and fences.
  • Paths, drives and patios.
  • Permanent swimming pools (made of brick, stone or concrete), fixed hot tubs and ornamental ponds.
  • Hard tennis courts.
  • Solar panels.


WHAT DO WE MEAN BY 'CONTENTS' ?

When we use the word ‘contents’, we mean any items that you or your family own or are responsible for, including Personal Belongings. Just to be clear, ‘contents’ does not mean:

  • Aircraft, gliders, hang gliders and microlights, or any of their parts or accessories.
  • Any motorised watercraft or sail boats, or any of their parts or accessories.
  • Animals, birds or fish.
  • Items held or used for business purposes (even if only occasional business use), except home office equipment that is used for administrative activities undertaken at your home.
  • Caravans, trailers and ‘motor vehicles’, or any of their parts or accessories, except motorbike clothing and helmets.
  • Interior decorations

When you're looking to make a claim, the first thing you'll want to check is what you are and aren't covered for.

We've listed the details below, but you can also download your home insurance policy document.

 

WHAT'S NOT COVERED?*

list of what's not covered

 

Please note the above relates to our standard Rias Home Insurance policy.


Buildings cover

You’re only covered under this section of the policy if it says so on your Statement of Fact, which was given to you when you bought this insurance.

LEAKING OR FREEZING WATER

  
What's covered?  What's not covered?
  • We’ll pay for any damage caused by water or oil leaking from your storage tanks, pipes or heating system and water leaking from your drains. We’ll also pay for damage caused by water freezing within any of these.
  • We’ll also pay for damage caused by water leaking from or freezing in your home appliances, fish tank and even your water-bed.
  • Sometimes it’s not easy to find where water or oil is leaking from. So, providing your buildings have been damaged by the leaking water or oil, we’ll cover any reasonable costs you have to pay to find the leak, and that includes the cost of repairs to walls, floors or ceilings.
  • You must get our agreement before work starts, so we can decide whether finding the leak is the most practical and costeffective solution to the problem. For example, it may cost less to install new pipework than knocking holes in walls or floors to find the original leak.
  • We won’t pay for damage caused by leaking or freezing, water or oil, when your home is unoccupied.
  • We won’t pay for damage caused by the failure, wear and tear or lack of grouting or sealant.
  • We won’t pay for repairs to the pipework or other parts of the water or heating system unless they’re caused by freezing. If they’re damaged for any other reason, this part of the policy won’t cover you.
  • We won’t pay for any costs associated with finding a leak, unless the buildings have been damaged by the leaking water or oil.
  • This part of your policy also won’t pay claims for damage caused by water overflowing sinks, bidets, showers and baths, as a result of taps being left on in your home.
  • Finally, you can’t make a claim for damage caused by subsidence, ground heave or landslip under the ‘Leaking or freezing water & leaking oil’ part of the policy. These claims must be dealt with under the subsidence part of the policy and a higher excess applies to all subsidence claims.

 

 FLOOD

  
What's covered?  What's not covered?
  • We’ll cover you for damage to your buildings caused by a flood.
  • By flood, we mean water that comes suddenly into your buildings from outside and which enters at the ground floor or below.
  • We won’t cover you for damage to gates and fences.
  • We also won’t cover damage to
    swimming pool and hot tub covers.
  • Finally, you can’t make a claim for damage caused by subsidence, ground heave or landslip under the flood part of the policy. These claims must be dealt with under the subsidence part of the policy and a higher excess would apply.

 

Contents cover

You’re only covered under this section of the policy if it says so on your Statement of Fact, which was sent to you when you bought this insurance.

This section of your policy only covers your contents when they’re at your home unless we specifically say otherwise.

LEAKING OR FREEZING WATER

  
What's covered?  What's not covered?
  • We’ll pay for any damage to your contents caused by water or oil leaking from your storage tanks, pipes or heating
    system and water leaking from your drains. We’ll also pay for damage caused by water freezing within any of these.
  • We’ll pay for damage caused by water leaking from or freezing in your home appliances, fish tank, and even your water-bed.
  • We won’t pay for damage caused by leaking or freezing water or leaking oil, when your home is unoccupied.
  • We won’t pay for damage caused by the failure, wear and tear or lack of grouting or sealant.
  • We also won’t pay for any damage to the fixed domestic water or heating system itself or any costs associated with
    finding a leak.
  • This part of your policy also won’t pay claims for damage caused by water overflowing from sinks, bidets, showers and baths, as a result of taps being left on in your home.
 

 FLOOD

  
What's covered?  What's not covered?
  • We’ll cover you for damage to your contents caused by a flood.

  • By flood, we mean water that comes suddenly into your buildings from outside, and which enters at the ground
    floor or below.
  • We won’t cover you for damage to gates and fences.
  • We also won’t cover damage to swimming pool and hot tub covers.

  • Finally, you can’t make a claim for damage caused by subsidence, ground heave or
    landslip under the flood part of the policy. These claims must be dealt with under the subsidence part of the policy and a higher excess would apply.

 

View your documents:

Please note the above relates to our Rias Home Insurance policy.