Page 1 of 3

Contact: Anne Dempsey ( 07468 471 039 * anne.dempsey@marsh.com

PERSONAL INSURANCE SOLUTIONS FOR MARSH CLIENTS

We would like to highlight an additional quality service that may be of interest to you.

We understand that many of you may lead complex and busy lifestyles – often juggling work, personal commitments or leading active social lives. Time is precious, so why spend it on activities that Marsh Private Clients can help manage for you?

FOR PEACE OF MIND, OPT FOR SPECIALIST ADVICE

People that own high value assets and possessions could benefit from specialist insurance arranged by Marsh Private

Clients. A standard home insurance policy may be adequate for the average three-bedroom home, but it may prove to be

false economy for high value homes. The risks are likely to be more diverse, the potential losses more significant, and the

process of replacement or repair, more involved – especially if they own expensive jewellery, fine art or bespoke furniture.

As a valued corporate client, Marsh Private Clients is delighted to offer you a complimentary audit of your own

personal assets and a full premium benchmark against your existing policy.

Marsh Private Clients specialises in providing bespoke personal insurance and risk management solutions. Everything

we do is based around personal advice and service, delivered by a team that understands the complex lifestyles led by

people with high value assets and possessions.

In this document we want to highlight articles which may be of interest to you:

• For peace of mind, opt for specialist advice.

• Insuring a higher value property: common pitfalls to discuss with a specialist insurance broker.

INSURING A HIGHER VALUE PROPERTY: COMMON PITFALLS TO DISCUSS WITH A SPECIALIST INSURANCE BROKER

Page 2 of 3

1. Confusing price with value.

Any savings made on your home insurance with a standard policy could prove to be a false economy if, later on, you lose

thousands on a claim because you didn’t have adequate cover.

2. Under-estimating the value of your home or contents.

Under-insurance is a serious problem, particularly if your home is worth more than the average. The Association of British

Insurers (ABI) estimates that one in four UK homes may be under-insured.

Why not consider having your contents valued by a professional valuer? They offer a variety of valuation services from single

items, to basic sum insured calculations, through to full valuations. We suggest you review the valuation every three to five

years to take account of fluctuations in the jewellery, art, and antique markets.

3. Banking on your insurance to cover you for all eventualities.

Standard policies are likely to be “perils-based”. This means you are covered only for loss or damage resulting from specified

perils – such as fire, theft, storm, and water damage.

4. Forgetting to check if your insurance policy is “warranty-free”.

Standard policies are likely to include an alarm clause or “warranty” which invalidates theft cover should you, for instance, go

out and forget to set the burglar alarm.

5. Letting an insurer dictate how you replace lost, stolen or damaged items.

You may prefer to have cash or to replace a lost item with something slightly different, particularly if it was one-of-a-kind or

had sentimental value.

* Source: ABI (https://www.abi.org.uk).

KEEPING VALUES UP TO DATE

A popular misconception is that in the event of a claim, insurers will pay up to your chosen sum insured. However, this may not be

correct for all home insurance policies. If you’re under-insured they may deduct the percentage of under-insurance from the claim

payment, leaving you with a financial loss.

Page 3 of 3

Statements concerning legal, tax or accounting matters should be understood to be general observations based solely on our experience as insurance brokers and risk consultants and should not be relied upon as legal, tax or accounting advice, which we are not authorised to provide.

The information contained herein is based on sources we believe reliable and should be understood to be general risk management and insurance information only. The information is not intended to be taken as advice with respect to any individual situation and cannot be relied upon as such.

Marsh Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Copyright © 2015 Marsh Ltd All rights reserved.

INSURE FOR THE RIGHT VALUE

The rebuilding cost of a home can be very different from its

market value, so take care that the value you insure reflects

the cost of rebuilding your home.

A chartered surveyor will be able to calculate this for you.

If you’ve bought your property with the aid of a mortgage,

the lending company will have carried out a home buyer’s

report which will include a recommendation for the level

of insurance. If you’ve extended your property, added

a conservatory or upgraded the kitchen or bathroom

fixtures, you should consider whether your sum insured

needs to be increased to take account of the work.

THE CONTENTS OF YOUR HOME MUST ALSO BE CONSIDERED

The general contents of your home should be insured for the

cost of replacing them as new.

It isn’t enough to just rely on index linking to keep your

contents sum insured up to date. You should review the sum

insured each year. It may be helpful to compile an inventory of

items to assist you in arriving at your sum insured. With some

insurers estimating the cost of replacing the average female’s

wardrobe to be over £20,000, it’s important not to overlook

clothing and other items in your cupboards such as children’s

toys.

JEWELLERY FOCUS

It’s important that you insure your jewellery for the cost of

replacing them with similar items. Don’t forget to include

new acquisitions or items which have been inherited since

the sum insured was last reviewed.

We work closely with a number of experienced valuers that

are able to provide you with highly detailed valuations for

insurance purposes.

Prestige Valuations Services forms part of this expert panel and is offering you an hour’s free valuation for up to four items of jewellery. To find out more, contact us.

COMPLIMENTARY APPRAISALS

A number of the specialist insurers we work with will visit your home and carry out a complimentary appraisal to calculate the

rebuilding cost. This will take into account any unusual features like carved staircases or high quality fitted kitchen units to

make sure you could replace them if they were damaged. Then, in the majority of cases, they will guarantee that in the event

of a claim they will pay whatever it costs to repair the damage, even if the sum insured they calculated was insufficient to cover

this.

If your property has unusual internal features it’s important to ensure the sum insured takes account of the cost of reinstating

these.