Home insurance covers against loss if your house (the actual building) is damaged as a result of a fire and related perils that typically include:

• Lightning
• Storms and Flooding
• Earthquakes
• Explosions
• Escape of water or oil
• Subsidence, ground heave or landslip
• Impact by road vehicles, horses or cattle.
• Falling TV or radio receiving aerials, their fittings and masts.
• Riots, civil commotion, strikes, labour or political disturbances, malicious damage or vandalism
• Theft or attempted theft

A home insurance policy in will typically have four sections, namely:

1. Buildings – this is the section where the actual physical structure is covered against fire and related perils. This includes elements such as external walls, fences, driveways, paths, garages and other buildings in the same compound. If the insured doesn’t own the building, this section is left blank.
2. Contents – The contents section of a home insurance plan covers household contents against damage caused by fire and related perils as well as burglary.
3. All risks – There are some possessions which we normally carry with us and which may be lost outside the home. Examples include; mobile phones, laptops, cameras, spectacles, jewellery, watches and so forth. Insurers normally place limits on the value of single items. This section also comes with an excess (an amount which the insured is responsible for in the event of loss or damage).
4. Legal Liability – there are four kinds of liability that are typically covered in a home insurance policy:
      - Personal liability of the insured as a private individual.
      - Liability of the insured if he is a tenant in the building.
      - Liability of the insured if he employs domestic servants in the building.