Any home not constructed of tiles, bricks and mortar can fall outside of the ‘standard’ bracket and be considered as higher risk by insurers. This includes wattle and daub, listed buildings, steel or timber framed builds, concrete homes, even flat roofs or non-standard extensions, the list is quite extensive.

A  premium is the amount of money you are charged to take out a particular insurance policy. In other words, it's the amount you pay every month. It's based on how likely your insurance company thinks you are to make a claim.

Non-standard home insurance is necessary for houses that aren’t built in the usual way i.e. constructed by materials other than bricks or tiles. Some homes also need non standard home insurance due to their location being in high flood risk areas. In addition if your personal circumstances are such that you have convictions, own a second home, have an unoccupied home, you will also require non standard home insurance.

They are viewed differently as they've usually been built differently,  using unusual materials or old-fashioned construction methods. As a result a specialist non standard home insurance policy is required as replacing/repairing the home can be more costly and these types of homes usually require more maintenance. It can be challenging to obtain building materials needed and usually specialist tradespeople are needed on top of that.

The difference is that buildings insurance covers the physical property such as walls, roof and floors whereas contents insurance covers the items inside the premises.

We offer you flexibility and choice in terms of levels of cover and cost but you’re still only covered for certain things.
With Open and Direct, we have three policy extras that you can choose from - Home Emergency Cover and Family Legal Cover and Unoccupied Legal Cover.

With Open and Direct you can add Home Emergency Cover or Legal Cover - we offer Family Legal Cover for properties that are the main home or Unoccupied Legal Cover for properties that are holiday homes or simply unoccupied. Home Emergency cover offers a 24/7 helpline for heating system failure, roof damage, burst pipes, plumbing issues, property damage and loss of keys.   Legal helps if you need to make a legal claim - you can receive up to £50,000 for advisers' costs* for certain types of legal action relating to your home from personal injury to faulty workmanship. *Terms and conditions apply.

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Much like car insurance, being married can be a factor in assessing your risk profile potentially leading to a cheaper premium. This is because married couples are found to file fewer insurance claims than single individuals. 

Home insurance excess is the amount of money you will need to pay towards a claim before your insurance provider pays out. Excess means anyone making a claim will have to make a payment which helps to deter fraudalent claims and it also plays a part in keeping the cost of overall insurance down. 

When you get a home insurance quote, you set your voluntary excess amount which is the amount you agree to pay towards any claim you make against your policy in addition to the compulsory excess amount. Increasing your voluntary excess can help reduce your overall premium but it could also mean you have a large bill to cover in the event you need to make a claim.

Compulsory excess is set by your insurance provider and it's the fixed amount of money you will pay if you make a claim on your home insurance. Compulsory excess amounts vary depending on your risk profile so everyone's excess is different.

As well as being essential for safety, home insurance premiums may be lower if you have working smoke alarms fitted.

Non-standard home insurance is often more expensive as it provides cover for unique risks, properties that have unusual building materials, are positioned in an area with a high flood risk or have had previous claims on policies. There are things that you can try to see whether it helps to bring your cost down a little. One option is to increase your voluntary excess however you need to be able to afford this in the event of a claim. Increasing home security can also improve the cost as some insurers offer discounts for improvements to security. Using a specialist broker can also help you find a more cost competitive price in comparison with mainstream brokers. 

You will need detailed information about the property you wish to insure to include construction materials, year it was built, number of rooms as well as any risk factors such as subsidence, ground heave, flooding, proximity to water, structural issues and use of the property. Security features will also be important to declare as well as information about the contents if contents is what you also wish to insure - this includes valuable items, personal posessions etc. Previous claims history is aso needed.