Budget Insurance Home Insurance Review

Written by Better Insurance
Mar 31, 2023

Budget Insurance Home Insurance at a Glance

Comprehensive home contents and buildings insurance.
Earn cash back for being claim free.
Access to ‘Assist Benefits’ programme.

7.6

What we like:

All of Budget Insurance’s home insurance policies are fairly comprehensive in terms of what types of loss and damage they cover, despite a few exclusions. The ‘Assist Benefits’ is very much comparable to other assistance programmes offered by other insurers.

Best for:

Budget Insurance home contents and buildings insurance is best suited for people who are looking for fairly comprehensive coverage, a tailored cover amount, and additional assistive benefits.

Pros

The cover amount is tailored to your property and needs.
Earn up to 15% for your first two years claim-free.
Two home contents policies to suit your budget.

Cons

Successful claims are subject to meeting various terms and conditions.

Unfortunately, even with the best security measures you can never be certain that you will not be the victim of a break-in, natural disaster, or freak accident. While you cannot prevent unfortunate events from happening, you can prepare financially to repair or rebuild. Home insurance is a great way to make sure that your home is still a sanctuary for you and your loved ones.

Budget Insurance offers both home contents and buildings insurance policies. Both policies come with access to their ‘Assist Benefits’, giving you more than just financial help in the worst of times.

What Makes Budget Insurance Home Insurance Different?

You can ensure your property from the inside out with Budget Insurance’s home contents and buildings insurance policies. Budget Insurance offers two home contents insurance policies to suit different budgets and needs.

All Budget Insurance home insurance policies allow you access to their ‘Assist Benefits’, so you can benefit from your policy without claiming. Their ‘Home Assist’ benefit is aimed to help in the event of an emergency where you need to call an electrician, locksmith, glazier, or plumber. The company will pay for the call-out fee and an hour’s labour fees.

Also included in the ‘Assist Benefits’ package are ‘Road Assist’, ‘Trauma Assist’, and ‘Legal Assist’. These benefits encompass anything from help fixing a flat tyre, to 24-hour phone counselling, to telephonic legal advice. Additionally, these home insurance policies come with ‘Entertainment Assist’ which aims to make your life easier overall by taking care of organising smaller details like restaurant bookings and finding the right flight.

Budget Insurance Home Insurance Coverage Options and Benefits

Comprehensive Home Contents Insurance

If you’re looking for an insurance package that covers the items inside your home, Budget Insurance’s ‘Comprehensive Home Contents Insurance’ has it all. This policy offers coverage in the event of loss and damage, theft, fire, lightning, power surges, explosions, malicious damage, falling trees, natural disasters and burst geysers or pipes.

The maximum amount that will be paid out in each case above is listed in your insurance policy. For example, it may be stated that Budget Insurance will pay out a maximum amount of R5,000 for food spoiled due to your fridge or freezer breaking down in a power surge.

You will also be paid a sum of cash to cover rent costs if your home becomes unhabitable during repairs or the rebuilding process. In certain cases, you may also be compensated for death or medical and veterinary expenses.

Fire and Storm Only Contents Insurance

While this policy may be called ‘Fire and Storm’ only, the coverage extends beyond accidental fires and storm damages. This policy offers coverage in the event of a fire, lightning, power surges, explosions, falling trees, earthquakes, storms, floods, and water damage due to burst pipes or geysers.

You will also be financially compensated for rent if your home is uninhabitable, fire brigade charges, and medical and veterinary expenses in some cases. It’s important to note that you will not be covered for fires that occur on thatched roofs unless specifically stated in your policy. The main difference between the ‘Comprehensive Home Contents Insurance’ policy and ‘Fire and Storm’policy, is that the ‘Fire and Storm’ policy does not cover theft.

Buildings Insurance

Budget Insurance offers one comprehensive buildings insurance policy. This offers coverage for loss and damages to the physical, immovable structures on your property. This includes your house, garage, outbuildings, swimming pools, walls, fences, tennis courts, and gates. You can speak to a consultant about also including any other specific fixtures on your property. It’s important to note that while swimming pools are covered under this policy, any swimming pool equipment is not covered and neither are boreholes covered.

What kind of loss and damages does this policy cover? Here are the main types of damages covered:

Freak events like fires, explosions and power surges
Natural disasters like earthquakes, lightning, storms and floods
Water damage caused by burst pipes or overflowing geysers
Damages caused by vehicles, falling trees, or animals
Any malicious damages
Break-ins, thefts, and any associated damages
Loss of rental income due to circumstances covered in the policy
Subsidence of land by natural but abnormal circumstances

The last point refers to loss or damage to your property by the sudden sinking of the land. Unfortunately, it does not apply if your plot size shrinks by excavations, alterations, or normal settlement of the land.

Pricing and Discounts of Budget Insurance Home Insurance

The pricing of your Budget Insurance home contents and buildings insurance policies depends on a number of factors including the value of your property and the extent of coverage. Factors that can help you get a lower premium include regular maintenance of your property, increased security measures, and fewer past claims.

You can also take advantage of Budget Insurance’s cashback programme, ‘Cash Back Bonus’ to earn a percentage of your premiums back as an incentive for remaining claim-free. Budget Insurance will pay out 15% of your premiums back in cash after the first two years of being claim-free. Thereafter, you can claim 10% back in cash for the next two years that you are claim-free. And 10% for every year that you are claim-free following that.

Where Budget Insurance Home Insurance Can Improve

It can be difficult to understand the extent of your home insurance policy because of the many terms and conditions. And while the cover is fairly comprehensive, there still are a few exclusions to look out for! For example, under the ‘Comprehensive Home Contents Insurance’ policy, you are not covered for items that were stolen from your garage or outbuildings.

How to Request a Quote for Budget Insurance Home Insurance

Fill in the short questionnaire on the website to get an online quote.
Provide your name and contact number online to get a callback.
Call their customer service line on 0860 10 55 38.

If you do not have a South African ID number, you will have to contact a consultant for a quote.

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