We live in Carcassonne and have a 4 bed property (apartment in a very secure building - not new build) in the centre of town - 165 sq m. Bought in 2013 and we’ve been paying around 950 Euros a year since with one of the big insurance companies - Got the cover through our broker but feel that it’s too much to pay, especially as its our second home (we live outside France) and we spend a 2-3 months a year in it. Last year we added insurance for renters (airbnb) and it went up to 1050 Euros…
Looking to get some feedback on whether we’re paying too much. What do you think? Cheers!
Our house insurance last year was in the region 350€ for a new build single storey bungalow with double garage and hangar, attached 1 hectare land plus woodland including public liability but we live here 24/7.
I can well see from an actuarial point of view that a property left unoccupied for circa 9 months of the year is more prone to potential loss and compounded if rented out on airbnb .
Can’t say whether there might be a regional variance built in (south versus south west) but I’m sure someone else may be able to shed light on that.
I’ve just checked my own House I and it is more than yours… but… that is nothing to go by. Every Policy is tailored to the Owner’s needs…
I can highly recommend @fabien . He will give you an honest assessment and provide various options/quotes… which will, at the very least, let you decide whether or not you are paying too much.
@fabien has already sorted my Health Insurance and saved me some money, so I am now asking him to check into my other insurances.
I have no financial link with @fabien other than a highly satisfied customer.
You have nothing to lose by clicking on this link: @fabien
Town centre probably costs more than rural areas, and apartments may also be higher as more unknowns and higher reconstruction costs if it burns down. Plus having it empty a lot of the time. But it seems quite a bit as more than ours which cover 450+ sq m including a 3 bed gîte, plus a barn and garage.
Only way to check is to get quotes from other companies. But whatever you do, don’t use a comparator website as you will be inundated with junk mails, phones and texts for months afterwards.
the only way to see is to contact insurers direct. insurance is based on way more information that what you have provided so it is very very hard to estimate, also down to how much the home is worth, contents, drive or garage, security and so much more.
Hi everyone and thanks @Stella and @graham. It’s heart warming to read that kind of messages I’ll try to live up to the reputation as best as I can
As for @Umar_Khan’s question it depends, 165 sq meters isn’t a small house and regarding the level of cover (new for old, content covered, swimming pool, wood burner in the house, etc.) the premium can vary a lot. To be noted also, every insurer have different set of rules to assess the value of a house, some might consider the main rooms only and some the surface (and others both) so in regard to the situation some are more relevant than others (if we’re only assessing the price of course).
That being said 950€ does seem a bit high for a secondary house if the cover is basic / regular but again it depends on the value of the content + equipment of the house + level of cover.
Of course I’m happy to help if you’d like @fabien.
hahaha where you trying to a record number of tags of one person?
All my insurance from car home life, accident, business, public liability is all with same company and for 2 cars, life insurance, accident cover, business public liability etc etc I pay 145€ a month. so 1740 a year . ours is a 4 bed 15 room house 634 mtrs floor surface and 2 acres of land. My wife just checked the home insurance is 43€ a month including contents. We are very rural though and we are always home
No, Harry, I’m having a bad-hand day and it is easier to press certain keys than others… it is helpful (and less painful) if I can press the shortcut to the name…
hahaha im having a back back day. 5 days of living heavy machinery and it went the day after putting a towel in the washing machine lol. Saw simon this morning and he was not sympathetic at all lol.
ahah indeed I didn’t notice how many tags I was using in my previous comment… should I be running for a tag number trophy? lol
As for your house 43€ for a 15 room sounds super cheap like weirdly super cheap so it’s either insured to the bear minimum (like only the walls) or not insured exactly as it is (only to know if it’s properly insured is if you had a claim and an assessor had to come)… I might be missing something here so I’m not judging of course but from where I stand it looks really really cheap so if you’re properly insured don’t move lol
I completely rely… these changes with the weather have had the best of my back I’m only 34 and feel like my back is 75… gosh what will it be like in half a century (yes I’m an optimist as to my life expectancy )?
well we got burgled 2 years ago and they paid out in full. I also have business insurance for the business side and we keep all our insurance with same company. Yes i know I can get cheeper car insurance but when it all adds up no one comes close to ours on house and contents.
It as even cheeper in our old house that was only 9 rooms not including bathrooms.
mine came from 5 days of heavy lifting including a saw bench made of metal, and old style cooker and a forge still full of whatever they filled it with.
the towel was the straw that broke the back. Luckily all is good now
we wont be doing. You had me stressed so I rang Natalie and she assures me it covers everything. we opted for less contents insurance as most of our furniture is not worth a fortune and we do not live in luxuries apart from my kids. so our contents is not a massive figure.
A few years back, friends had their house burn to the ground and they stood in the street with just their night clothes…
Thankfully, they had a good Insurance policy. Sufficient to replace all their clothes, goods and chattels etc and also to rebuild the house. In the meantime, they and their animals were well taken care of by the Insurance folk… phew … what a relief.
As Fabien says… every Policy is different…and, at times of stress, it is important to have an Insurance company that does “not make a drama out of a crisis”…
Reading the small print is imperative … and no matter what… you only get what you pay for.
We pay 340 euros per year for our 190m2 house in a small village in Isere including the extra cover for valuables TVs etc This is a second house got this through our bank LCL we have no mortgage
Do I get the prize???
I’m only 34 and feel like my back is 75… gosh what will it be like in half a century (yes I’m an optimist as to my life expectancy 
