Inexpro
Short - Term
Insurance Brokerage
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Householders Insurance
There are also a couple of optional covers to choose from. If, for example, a mongoose 'perfumes' your furniture, the basic cover in terms of the Household Content section does not provide cover in this case. If you have taken out the accidental damage extension, you would have been able to claim and this claim will not affect your no-claim bonus. Stock-in-trade is another optional cover, as is subsidence and landslip. If a pipe bursts beneath your house and it causes your building to collapse, the subsidence and landslip extension will provide cover.
For your household content, you can either draw up an inventory yourself or use Santam's inventory (English/Afrikaans) form. You can also employ the services of a professional company specialising in the valuation of house contents.
More information available:
- Safety is key
- Why must burglar-bars and security gates protect a house?
- Arm your alarm
- Travel insurance - how far does your cover go?
- Emergency travel medical cover
- Some of the general problems experienced with travel cover
- Take the sting out of natural disasters
It is important to assess how vulnerable your home is. If you have fewer security measures than your neighbours do, you are likely to top burglars' popularity lists. Corner properties, buildings situated far from others, poor street lighting, and vacant land in the vicinity increase the risk. Walk around your property and look out for the following signs of poor security:
- Burglar proofing that is not firmly attached;
- Broken window-panes affording access to window catches;
- Badly installed locks on doors;
- Keys that can be pulled through an open window using wire or a stick; and
- Ladders left lying around.
Once you have identified the vulnerable areas, set about correcting the situation:
- Eliminate the gaps in your security system;
- Make sure there is adequate lighting;
- Have an alarm installed or acquire guard dogs if necessary; and
- Consider having walls or fences erected.
Why must burglar-bars and security gates protect a house?
Most insurers require that burglar bars and/or security gates protect opening windows and doors to your home. These anti-theft measures must be in place before an insurer will insure your household contents.
Your insurer may also insist that a 24-hour radio-linked alarm system be installed if the home is situated in a high-risk area, or if the value of your household contents is high. If these conditions are not met, it will be difficult to obtain household insurance. Non-adherence to requirements may result in a rejected claim. If you make any alterations to your house, be sure that you still adhere to the security requirements.
Although people rely heavily on alarms to warn them of intruders, a great deal of ignorance still exists about how to get the best out of your alarm. Keep the following in mind when having an alarm installed:
- Alarms that are not connected to an armed response emergency centre may not be worth investing in.
- Maintain your alarm - wipe the infrared sensors regularly with a damp cloth to make sure they're free of dust that could affect their functioning.
- Alarms are often installed to run off a power source that also services other equipment. If the power is switched off occasionally, this can seriously compromise the life and performance of the back-up battery.
- Test your alarm regularly.
Travel insurance - how far does your cover go?
Whether traveling locally or abroad, knowing that you are adequately covered in the event of an emergency is very important.
Items insured under the All Risks section of your policy are covered worldwide. The same does not necessarily apply to items such as motor vehicles and boats insured under different sections of your policy. Rather be safe than sorry. Contact your nearest Santam office before you leave the country to find out if any area restrictions apply and to what extent your belongings will be covered outside South Africa.
The policy mentions the amount that will be paid out in the event of lost or stolen luggage. It may or may not provide for limited benefits to replace luggage that has gone missing while on an insured trip. In addition, if the luggage were merely delayed, only certain emergency expenses would normally be covered by the policy. Again you would need to check your policy to determine exactly for what you are covered.
Emergency travel medical cover
Most medical insurance policies require that you obtain approval from the insurance company before incurring the expense. Insurers normally have a 24-hour telephone number for this purpose.
Most policies also exclude pre-existing conditions as well as certain specified illnesses. There are usually limits on the amounts payable for various medical procedures. These limits can normally be upgraded for an additional premium.
Medical emergencies are unforeseen and can cause an extreme amount of pain and suffering. Especially if you are stranded in a foreign country where you could end up paying hundreds of rands for medical care. Travel Insurance Consultants (TIC), Santam's niche insurance underwriter, specialises in personal travel and medical response insurance. They are able to offer you a policy structured to meet your needs.
Some of the general problems experienced with this type of cover
Travel insurance is usually obtained from travel agents and banks. For this reason, the person insured often does not receive an actual policy document, but only a brochure with a summary of the benefits. Such brochures tend not to list the exclusions, which are only contained in the actual policy document. Exclusions sometimes become apparent only when a claim is rejected.
The Short-Term Insurance Act requires that a full and complete policy document be sent to the insured party within 30 days of the policy being taken out.
Take the sting out of natural disasters
Could you afford to replace your possessions if irreparably damaged or lost in a catastrophe? It is important therefore to make sure that you have comprehensive cover against both the loss of possessions (house contents and vehicle insurance), as well as damage to your property itself (homeowners insurance).
In the chaos that usually accompanies a disaster it is common for people to completely overestimate the damage at the first glance (except of course where property has been utterly destroyed). Contact your insurer or broker to lodge a claim.
They will arrange for an assessor to determine the actual extent of the damage and for the claim process to be completed as swiftly as possible. Although your insurer or broker is familiar with your policy contract, it is a good idea to have copies made of it as well as of your valuation certificates.
