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What is a home insurance and how does it work?

Home Insurance provides a safety net for residences in the case they are damaged in different scenarios such as natural disasters, vandalism, theft, etc. The insurance plans provide coverage for the costs involved in paying for the repair or replacement of the property or belongings in the property. The policy will also cover you if you accidentally damage a third-party individual’s property, or a visitor is injured while at your home.

Home Insurance Coverage

Home Insurance covers the contents of your residence in case they are damaged or lost due to an unforeseen scenario. This can include, but is not limited to:

Furniture, appliances, electronic gadgets, jewellery, clothes, money, etc.)
Renovation, fixtures and fittings that do not form part of the building
Personal liability
Accidental glass breakage
Alternative accommodation costs
Loss of personal money or credit cards

Many plans also provide 24/7 emergency home assistance in the event you need to get a technician out to repair a fault, e.g. plumbers, electricians, locksmiths, etc.

Best Home Insurance in Singapore (2022)

Insurance Plans	Best For
FWD Home Insurance	Cheapest
AIG Homes Advantage	Worldwide Personal Benefits
Hong Leong Home Protect360	Household Content Coverage
Tiq Home Insurance	Rennovations
Sompo HomeBliss Insurance Serene	Loss of Rent

Is it a must to get home insurance?

For those living in HDB flats you are only obliged to source fire insurance. Fire insurance is very specific coverage however and only covers the cost of repairs post-fire – it doesn’t cover the cost of replacing any of your home’s contents in that fire, but home insurance does.

There are some key things to consider when you are buying home insurance:

What is the coverage for the loss or damage to my home content and valuables?
What is the coverage for loss or damage to building or renovations?
What is the coverage for personal liability?
Does it provide alternative accommodation expenses?
Can I afford the annual premium?

What home insurance coverage should you look out for?

There is a wide variety of policy options with an equally varied array of coverage and benefits:

Insured Peril vs All-Risk
An Insured Peril policy has a narrow scope and will only cover explicitly stated scenarios (e.g. theft), while an All-Risk policy tends to cover everything except specific exclusions (e.g. war). As you can expect, because All-Risk policies have a broader scope, they tend to be much more expensive than Insured Peril policies.

Building, Fixtures and Fittings
Commonly known as Fire Insurance, this is compulsory coverage required by anyone who purchases property in Singapore. The policy covers costs for rebuilding the building structure as well as any associated fixtures and fittings. You should note that this type of insurance tends not to cover renovations outside those performed as a part of the repair work.

Content
This will cover any damage sustained by your household items and belongings but does have exclusions such as security systems and pets.

Personal Liability
This covers you for any situations where you may be held legally responsible. For example, if someone is injured on your property while visiting. This type of insurance is particularly important for those renting, as it will cover you in case you break any items in the property that belong to your landlord.

Alternative Accommodation
In the case your residence becomes uninhabitable due to damage (e.g. fire), this covers the cost of temporary accommodation. There is generally a daily benefit limit and runs for a set time period, e.g. $50 a day for 30 days.

Personal effects, loss of money and valuables
This cover will protect any cash, valuables and other personal belongings against theft. Read the small print as each category you’ve included will have a cap on the amount that you can claim back (e.g. loss of money capped at $500).

What Local Health Insurance coverage should you look out for?

Inpatient Benefits
This generally covers any scenario that results in hospitalisation and/or surgery. This benefit allows you to claim all your medical expenses during your hospital stay, including but not limited to, room charges, surgery, medication and medical tests.

Outpatient Benefits
This covers any medical treatments received out of hospital, or scenarios that do not require you to stay in a hospital overnight. For example, dialysis, certain cancer treatments, etc.

Travel and Emergency
Local health insurance coverage usually only covers Singapore but there are options to select benefits that cover emergency situations you may encounter overseas when you travel such as requiring medical treatment, or emergency medical evacuations.

Pre-hospitalisation
This covers any expenses before you are directly hospitalised, for example medical tests conducted in order to obtain a diagnosis prior to treatment. Check the small print for the number of days which are covered prior to hospitalisation as this will vary depending on the provider’s policies.

Post-hospitalisation
This benefit covers expenses after you have been hospitalised, for example, medical tests to check progress, consultation fees, cost of medication, etc. Again, check the small print as, like the pre-hospitalisation benefit, the number of days you are covered post-hospitalisation will vary depending on your health insurance provider.

Buy the Coverage You Need

Don’t feel like you have to stick to the standard package – you can customize your own! Customizing home insurance will allow you push your coverage (and premiums!) towards insuring your home contents and renovations, instead of giving you generalised cover that isn’t a good fit for your lifestyle.

Check for Discount

One big thing to watch out for, is that some insurers will give you a discount if you sign up for a longer insurance plan. For example, Etiqa provides discounts for their 5-year plans.

Don’t Underinsure

Don’t think you can trick the insurance companies by taking out lower coverage than you actually need! Your assets have a paper value and that value should match the coverage in your policy. If you file a claim for an item that was not initially covered in the original policy, your provider can penalise you by reducing your total reimbursement.

Is it necessary to have Home Insurance?

If you have an active HDB housing loan in Singapore, you are also obligated to have a corresponding active HDB Fire Insurance.

Outside the HDB scheme, it is legal to own a home without insurance. If you are debating between Home Insurance or Fire Insurance, you should bear in mind that the Fire Insurance does not cover you for the contents of your home, only the cost of repair work after a fire has occurred. Home Insurance can cover the damage to your personal belongings, hence it is recommended that both scenarios are covered to reduce the overall financial burden in the event is extensive damage has occurred.

What are the benefits of Home Insurance?

Well, both your home as well as the contents in your home are financially protected by the policy and you’ll be reimbursed for any costs incurred when paying for repairs or replacements. Home Insurance also covers scenarios where, for example, you have accidentally damaged a third-party individual’s property, or a visitor suffers an injury while at your home. There are also other benefits and policies can also cover for loss of rent, grant an emergency cash allowance, as well as facilitate emergency repairs for pest control, plumbing, losing your keys and needing to call a locksmith, etc.

Do I need both HDB Fire Insurance and Home Insurance?

It is recommended to get both as they are two different types of insurance that cover different areas. The HDB Fire Insurance is specifically to cover the cost of repair work in the event of a fire while Home Insurance protects the contents of your home.

How much does Home Insurance cost?

It depends on the coverage you want! Basic plans can give general coverage across all property types, but prices can range from $53 to $400 a year depending on how complicated your coverage requirements are. The specifics of your home also come into play for example, the type of home (house, apartment, etc.), features of your home (garden, swimming pool, etc.) and your assessment of the financial value of your belongings.

Add-ons that provide supplementary coverage will obviously come at extra costs and you don’t want to be paying for any additional ones that you don’t need! Like with other forms of insurance you want to find a policy that best suits your needs at the most affordable price.

How much coverage should I have for Home Insurance?

The most suitable level of coverage depends on the type and size of your home as well as the contents within. If you have a lot of expensive items (e.g. kitchenware, laptops, etc.) you may want to add more protection. The annual premium should also be within your budget. Four main things to consider when calculating the amount of coverage you require are listed below:

Household contents (e.g. what furniture, clothing and appliances do you have?)
Renovation, fixtures and fittings (e.g. have you made any additional installations or modifications to the property since you moved in, such as built-in wardrobes or air conditioners?)
Building cover (e.g. have you considered the cost of repairing any direct damage to the building itself?)
Personal legal liability (e.g. do you have legal cover in case you damage another person’s property, or a visitor has an accident in your home?).

Can I purchase home insurance if I am going to rent out my home?

You can, but you should bear in mind that any malicious or deliberate damage inflicted by tenants will not be covered by the policy. You may want to consider taking out a landlord home insurance policy instead.

Will I ever need to change my home insurance coverage?

It’s a good idea to review your policy at least once a year to confirm that you are still getting the best deal on your premiums. It is also a good idea to refresh or update your policy in case you’ve made a big change to your home, e.g. made renovations, added a smart temperature system, or bought some expensive furniture, as your current policy may no longer cover the cost of replacing or repairing these new items or areas.

Is Home Insurance and homeowners insurance the same?

Yes, Home Insurance can also be called Home Content Insurance or Homeowners Insurance.

How to compare Home Insurance policies?

On comparison sites such as ROSHI, you can compare home insurance policies across different providers. You can sort the policies based on the main key search categories such as:

Premium
Building coverage
Maximum household contents cover
Personal liability
Provider

How do I qualify for Home Insurance?

You qualify for Home Insurance if you are:

at least 18 years old
a Singapore citizen; Permanent Resident of Singapore; or foreigner with a valid Work Pass, Student Pass, Dependent’s Pass or Long-Term Visit Pass
the owner of a house, or the landlord of a rented property, or a tenant.

What type of household contents am I covered for?

Household contents that are covered in policies can include but are not limited to:

Furniture, ornaments and decorations
Appliances and kitchenware
Locks and keys
Breakage of glass
Electronic gadgets and technology
Jewellery, clothes and shoes
Books, musical instruments and toys
Cash or credit cards
Renovation, fixtures and fittings that do not form part of the original building

You can also purchase add-ons to cover more niche items and scenarios, such as bicycles, home security systems, injuries incurred by pets, removal of debris, etc. An important thing to bear in mind however, is in the event you have to make a claim, you will need to tally up your belongings and prove that they exist before you will receive any reinbursement.

What is not covered by a standard Home Insurance?

Standard Home Insurance usually covers “expected” scenarios such natural disasters, lighting or fire damage, and theft by forced entry. However, if you incur damage to your home or contents that is outside the scope specified in the policy, it will not be covered.
To cover all your bases, an All-Risk Home Insurance policy is also available as an option and can provide you with a much broader scope of coverage, however they also tend to be more expensive due to the increased level of coverage. As an alternative you could buy specific Insurance Add-ons for specific scenarios you would prefer having coverage for.

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