What is specified items insurance?

Specified items cover, also known as personal possessions cover or specified all risks cover, is an optional extra available at an additional cost when purchasing home and contents insurance. 

Specified items cover allows you to insure individual, high-value items against accidental loss or damage. These items must be specified and outlined separately on your home insurance policy.

This is the final guide in our six-part series on finding the best value home insurance. Here we take a look at the difference between specified items cover and contents insurance, and outline what items people commonly insure. 

You can find the rest of the guides in our series linked at the end of this article.

Is specified items cover the same as contents cover?

While they are both a form of home insurance and there may be some overlap, specified items cover and contents insurance are different. 

With specified items cover, the person taking out the policy must list each personal belonging they want to cover and their value. These items are then covered against accidental loss, damage and theft in the home. They may be covered outside the home if it's an all-risks policy. 

With contents insurance, only items that get damaged, lost or stolen from inside the house itself are covered, such as furniture and appliances. There is a set limit on overall contents insured and contents cover doesn't include valuable personal possessions.

So, for example, if you only had contents cover in place and your house was burgled, resulting in your laptop being stolen, it would not be covered by your policy. This is because a laptop is a personal item of high value and must be specified. 

The only way to purchase specified items cover is to add it onto a home or contents insurance policy. It’s also possible to purchase gadget insurance for electronics, such as phones and laptops.

Are items covered when taken abroad?

Usually, specified items are covered for up to 60 consecutive days in any country globally. However, it’s best to check with the particular insurance provider to see if this is the case.

What are examples of specified items?

To ensure that the items of most value to you are protected, we’d recommend that you list them individually on your home or contents insurance policy. 

When using our home insurance service, you'll need to provide a valuation issued in the last 3 years for individual items worth over €6,000. Some insurers may also require you to provide proof of valuation.

Some common specified items include:

• Items of jewellery (e.g. engagement rings) and watches
• Laptops, computers and tablets
• Mobile phones
• Bicycles
• Sports equipment
• Cameras
• Hearing aids
• Musical instruments
• Keys
• Wallets, purses and handbags
• Clothing

Sometimes insurers will have a maximum number of specified items you can add, so make sure you insure the items that are most valuable to you.

Making a claim

If you decide to make a claim for a specified item, insurers will usually finance the cost of the repair or will replace the item. 

There are some things to keep in mind when making a claim:

• Underinsurance: To safeguard your financial interest in each item, you must insure them for the full reinstated value. If you under-insure an item, your claim settlement will be reduced in accordance with the underinsurance.
• Wear and tear: If claiming clothing, furs or footwear, the insurer may deduct an amount for wear and tear, compared with the actual sum insured.
• Sets and collections: Most insurers won’t pay any costs relating to the replacement or repair of any undamaged or remaining items which form part of a set, suite, group or collection of articles.
• Resale market value: If you don’t replace an article that is lost or damaged beyond economical repair, most insurers will only pay the resale market value.

Get cheaper home and contents insurance on bonkers.ie

Do you have personal items you’d like to insure? Why not check out our home insurance service? Protect your home and possessions against the unexpected and get a discounted home insurance quote on bonkers.ie

Simply head over to our home insurance page, and enter some details about yourself and your home to find the policy that best matches your needs. You can add specific items insurance for your personal possessions and apply online for cover in just minutes. 

Take a look at our guide on how to use our home insurance service to view a full outline of the process. 

It’s important to know that if you’re looking to take out a mortgage, you’ll be required to have home insurance in place by your lender. Similarly, you’ll also be obliged to take out mortgage protection insurance, which you can also get on bonkers.ie.

To discover more ways to save money, take a look at some of our other comparison services. We compare deals and prices for energy, broadband, other insurance products and banking products on bonkers.ie, so that you can get the best value for your money. 

Best of all, our services are free, easy-to-use, impartial and accurate.

Helpful home insurance guides

Take a look at the other helpful home insurance guides in our series to learn more:

• In our Quickstart Guide, you’ll find a complete outline and a brief overview of all the guides in our series.
• You can learn how to use our home insurance tool in this guide.
• If you’ve changed your mind about your home insurance policy, you’ll be able to cancel it. This guide explains the cooling off period and cancellation process.
• In this guide, we’ve compiled a list of the most common questions asked about home insurance.
• Before taking out your policy, have a look at these 9 things to consider when taking out home insurance.

You can stay up to date on the latest home insurance news and helpful information by keeping an eye on our blogs and guides pages.

Have any questions?

If you have any questions or queries about specified items insurance or home insurance in general, let us know! You can get in touch on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.