What is domestic appliance insurance?

A domestic nightmare, like your washing machine leaking or your fridge failing, can quickly turn your mood from good to bad. We rely on these appliances so much that when something goes wrong it becomes somewhat of a crisis!

If your appliances are under a year old, they’re likely covered by warranty but what about older appliances? Although contents insurance may cover you for things like accidental damage or theft, it won’t necessarily cover the cost of a call-out charge, parts and repairs – expenses that can quickly add up.

For this reason, many people choose to take out domestic appliance insurance. This type of cover offers the peace of mind that if something goes wrong with your appliances, you can get them repaired or replaced quickly. It’s a way to save you money in the long run and guarantee less disruption to your life when a domestic nightmare strikes.

How does appliance insurance work?

Home appliance insurance is designed to bridge the gap between manufacturers’ warranty and contents insurance.

It goes beyond the offerings of a manufacturers warranty, which only tends to last a year (unless you pay for extended warranty) and contents insurance, which doesn’t cover repairs required as a result of general wear and tear.

For a fixed fee per month (sometimes per year) you can cover all of the domestic appliances in your home. Then, if something goes wrong, you can simply ring up your insurance provider and make a claim. It’s a way of gaining peace of mind that if your kitchen or home appliances fail, you won’t be left out of pocket or without use of them for long!

With appliance insurance you will usually be covered for:

• Breakdowns
• Cost of repairs and call-out charges
• Cost of appliance parts
• Emergency replacements

Not all policies will cover you for accidental damage or theft, as these are both covered by contents insurance.

Benefits of home appliance cover

Wondering if it’s worth taking out domestic appliance insurance? Here are the two main reasons why it’s worth the money.

1. It’s convenient

One of the great things about having appliance insurance is that you won’t have to go days or weeks without access to a fridge, freezer, oven, washing machine, or any other appliance covered. If something goes wrong, your insurance provider will send a qualified technician out to fix it. If they can’t, they’ll likely be responsible for sourcing a replacement. It’s much more convenient than you having to organise your own repairs, or go without using an appliance until you can afford to have it repaired or replaced.

2. It’ll save you money

We all know how expensive it can be to repair a washing machine or replace a fridge-freezer. Rather than forking out hundreds of pounds, why not take out appliance insurance for a small monthly fee? It’ll cover the cost of call-out charges, repairs, parts and labour. Most home appliance insurance companies will include the cost of replacement (if your appliance can’t be fixed) in your policy too.

Types of appliance insurance

Domestic appliance insurance goes by several different names such as home appliance insurance, white goods insurance and kitchen appliance cover. For the most part, the policies will cover all of the key appliances in your home, including:

• Washing machine
• Dishwasher
• Tumble Dryer
• Oven
• Fridge
• Freezer

However, it’s always worth double-checking individual policies to make sure.

If you don’t want to buy cover for all of the appliances in your home, you may be better off looking for a more specific policy i.e. washing machine insurance or kitchen appliance insurance.

Keep in mind that mobile phones, laptops and tablets aren’t usually covered in a typical appliance insurance policy. For this, you’ll need gadget cover (or gadget insurance) instead.

What to look for in a domestic appliance insurance policy?

When searching for cover online, you’ll find there are hundreds, if not thousands, of different home appliance insurance companies to choose from. So how do you go about securing the best home appliance insurance? Here are a few tips on what to look out for:

• Adequate cover – First things first, you only want to consider policies that provide the level of cover you require. Make sure all the appliances you need covering are included in the policy. It’s also worth checking whether there is a limit to the number of appliances you can insure and their age. Find out how many claims you can make and whether there is a maximum payout value for a single claim.
• Easy claims process – Look for providers that offer a 24/7 helpline so you can claim at any time. A good insurance company will aim to send a contractor out to you within 24-48 hours.
• Competitive price – You shouldn’t have to spend a fortune on appliance insurance. Shop around for quotes and compare them to get the level of cover you need for the best price.
• Transparency – The policy should be clear and easy to understand. Make sure you know exactly what you are covered for and what you’re not. Remember, the devil is always in the detail, so read the small print carefully.
• Good reputation – Only consider home appliance insurance companies that have a good reputation and are credited for their excellent customer service. Read reviews online and ask people you trust for recommendations. You need to be reassured that if you need to make a claim, the insurance provider will make it easy and offer what they promise in their policy.

Do you need domestic appliance insurance?

Whether or not you would benefit from appliance insurance comes down to the age of your appliance, how much it cost and your personal finances. If your appliances are under warranty, there’s no need to pay for domestic appliance insurance just yet. However, if your appliances are out-of-warranty and expensive to replace, you are likely to benefit from paying a small fixed fee per month for domestic appliance insurance.

Compare insurance quotes, check reviews and make sure you fully understand your appliance insurance policy before signing on the dotted line.