What is Home Insurance?

Home insurance is a comprehensive type of insurance that protects the house and its contents against many risks, from natural disasters such as floods and earthquakes to theft and fire. At the same time, not only homeowners but also tenants can benefit from home insurance. Even if they are not the owner of the house, those who live in the house can ensure their belongings with this insurance. Housing insurance coverage consists of main and additional guarantees. These coverages may vary depending on the insurance company.

The most important risk in housing insurance is the risk of fire. Every insurance company provides fire insurance for home insurance. Under this warranty, goods damaged by lightning and fire are insured. Housing insurance also covers the direct damages to the insured property by the smoke and steam resulting from explosion and fire. By expanding the scope of the insurance policy, it is possible to secure the house and property against many risks.

Home insurance is not mandatory. However, since it is the only guarantee in the hand of the bank during the loan payment process for the houses to be purchased with a housing loan, the bank may request that the house be insured against possible damages. DASK (Turkey's compulsory earthquake insurance) options with compulsory earthquake insurance must be made by all house owners. However, home insurance types can be made optionally. DASK (Turkey's compulsory earthquake insurance) and home insurance have differences from each other.

Both types of insurance cover damage to residences. However, there is a difference between the two types of insurance. The main difference between the two types of insurance is the coverage of their insurance package. Compulsory earthquake insurance Dask only covers part of the material damage caused by the earthquake. Housing insurance covers damages that may occur due to many different reasons such as fire, explosion, collapse, car crash, plane crash, and storm.

What does Home Insurance do?

Housing insurance provides coverage for the following situations. Housing insurance covers material and moral damages as listed below,

• Explosion and Fire: All damages and losses that may arise due to these are the two reasons that are covered by the insurance coverage.
• Strikes, lockouts, riots, terrorism, and public movements: An exemption is applied for 5% of what happened in an incident that occurred in the actions that took place in the events that took place by these movements.
• Personal accident insurance: It covers the policyholder in case of accident due to an accident at risk, and the policy in case of death.
• Internal water: Damages to insured goods as a result of explosion or breakage of water, boiler, or heating pipes or installations in the building are covered by the coverage.
• Protection from inflation: It is ensured that the values ​​of buildings and goods are protected against inflation.
• Extortion and snatching: In cases of extortion and snatching that the insured and his family encounter outside the home, damage to personal belongings or theft of cash is covered under the special conditions specified in the policy.
• Smoke: Damages caused by cooking appliances connected to the vent or pipe and chimney are among the guarantees.
• Debris removal: Expenses for the removal of debris resulting from the realization of the risk covered by the policy are covered.
• Machine breakage: Breakage of machines that are at most 10 years old, such as hydrophore, generator, pool installation, and the compressor in the house, are considered within the scope of the policy.
• Assistance services: Electricity, plumbing, switch and glassworks, ambulance, sending specialist nurses and doctors, security and hotel services, and delivery of emergency messages are among the guarantees within the scope of assistance services.
• Responsibility of the head of the family: Material and bodily damages that the insured and his family will cause to third parties in the house due to an accident are among the guarantees.
• Flood: In case of overflow of streams, streams, rivers, sewers, and canals around the insured residence, and in case of floods and floods due to abnormal precipitation, the goods damaged are insured.
• Landslide: Items damaged in the collapse and landslide that occur due to flooding on the land on which the insured house is built and its surroundings are covered by the coverage.
• Earthquake and volcanic eruption: Damages other than Compulsory Earthquake Insurance (DASK) are covered by housing insurance.
• Weight of snow: Damages to buildings, roofs, and goods as a result of falling of ice and snow accumulated on the roof due to heavy snowfall are covered.
• Storm: Damages caused by storms caused by natural events such as hail, rain, and snow, or due to items dragged by the storm are considered within the scope of coverage.

When the appropriate housing insurance is taken out according to the needs, a guarantee is created for all the above-mentioned risks.

What does Home Insurance Cover?

The scope of home insurance in Turkey varies according to the policies of the insurance companies and the type of policy they prefer. At the same time, the coverage differs according to the needs of the people who will take out the insurance and the risks they foresee. In the related insurance policy, premiums and compensation are calculated separately. Within the scope of home insurance, lightning and fire are the two main coverage risks. Items damaged due to these two risks are insured. If the smoke and steam caused by explosion and fire damaged the insured goods, then these damages are also covered. In addition to lightning and fire risks, many risks can be covered by Housing Insurance. These risks and the items subject to the guarantee are glass breakage, smoke, internal water, natural disasters, strike, lockout, terrorism, popular movements, personal accident, theft, extortion, inflation, machine breakage, debris removal, family head responsibility, assistance services, and transportation.

What is the Main Coverage in House Insurance?

The main coverage in all home insurance policies is fire insurance coverage. Other guarantees are additional guarantees. Depending on the housing and property situation, additional additions and subtractions can be made to the coverage. The following coverages are the basic coverage types included in the housing insurance policy.

• Fire insurance coverage: It covers damages that may occur due to fire in the residence and belongings. It also covers the damages caused by smoke if the risks are specified. fire may be caused by accidental explosions. Therefore, it is beneficial to add the risk of explosion to the policy.
• Theft insurance coverage: Theft insurance covers the damages incurred during and after the theft.
• Earthquake and volcanic eruption coverage: All damages due to this reason are covered.
• Flood and flood coverage: Flood and flood coverage covers all damages caused by flood or inundation. It also covers property damage. If there is a garden of the house or any other area outside of the house, they must be covered in advance in the policy to be covered by the coverage.
• In-building water systems guarantee: It covers the damages caused by the water infrastructure that may occur inside the building.
• Storm, hail, smoke, snow weight, and landslide coverage: All these insured risks compensate for the losses when they occur. It must be specified in the policy separately for each risk subject.
• Collision by land, sea, and air vehicle
• Guarantee against guests in the residence: It also covers the damages of the guests in the residence.
• debris removal costs: Although debris removal costs are often an unnoticed and underestimated risk, they create serious costs as a result of an event. For this reason, when it is added to the policy, this risk is guaranteed.
• Residence and moving expenses: After a possible risk has occurred, a complete relocation or transfer of goods may occur. It covers the costs that may arise in these situations. It protects from economic loss.
• Electronic device guarantee: Electronic device coverage is one of the important guarantees. It is one of the important elements of property insurance within the scope of home insurance. In the event of loss or damage to these devices, which are easy to deteriorate and damage, this guarantee ensures loss and damage. According to the policy of the insurance company, there may also be a financial guarantee. Another alternative method is to provide a device with the same value and features by the insurance company.

How to Get Home Insurance?

When choosing housing insurance in Turkey, the risks related to the house and its contents should be determined first. Then the cost of the house and the cost of the goods must be calculated. After that, companies that make home insurance should be researched and the insurance company with the best coverage package should be selected. While making a home insurance policy with the insurance company, a contract is made by talking openly about every subject. In the meantime, necessary information and documents are given. The policy is prepared. The annual premium is determined in the policy. If a policy addendum is requested at the end of each year, it is made automatically. It is completely optional. Additional guarantees may be added according to the conditions. The policy can be revised.

Many foreigners in Turkey buy a house to live in or to invest in. For foreigners to obtain home insurance, they must be residents and given a foreign identity number. The State of the Republic of Turkey gives the foreigner identification number. With this number, it is easy and possible to integrate into the system from insurance companies. It is possible to have insurance in this way. If foreigners live in the house they bought and take out housing insurance, the insurance also covers their belongings inside the house. If he or she does not live here and rents his house, the insurance covers the house, that is, the building.

What are the Documents Required for Home Insurance?

In housing insurance, the owner of the house must ensure his or her house is over the current construction square meter cost on the insured date, excluding the land price. Within the scope of the housing package insurance, including all the items in the guarantee and performing the TCIP together will provide full assurance. Dask is compulsory earthquake insurance as it is known in Turkey. Again, since personal accident insurance and many similar insurance risks include housing risks, the selection of risks for insurance coverage is important. According to the selection of these risks and the scope of the coverage, the scope of the documents also changes while taking out the home insurance. These are all as follows:

• ID information
• Official document showing the full address of the residence
• Document showing the construction cost of the house
• Determination of the floor and square meter of the residence
• Documents on information showing the cost of goods
• Usage style of the residence

Is it Mandatory to have Home Insurance in Turkey?

Housing insurance is not compulsory in Turkey. It is an optional type of insurance. According to the scope of housing insurance, it secures the house against fire, flood, natural disaster, and theft. DASK insurance provides coverage for earthquakes. TCIP is obligatory in Turkey. However, home insurance is not compulsory. If a loan is to be used while buying a house, many banks from which the loan will be drawn may require insurance for the duration of the loan debt. However, there is no legal requirement. Although it is not compulsory, it is a type of insurance that is necessary for the security of the house. If a loan is to be used while buying a house, many banks from which the loan will be drawn may require insurance for the duration of the loan debt.

What is the Home Insurance Fee in Turkey?

Housing insurance is a type of insurance that insures your house against fire, earthquake, flood, hail, theft, glass breakage, and many other possible damages, depending on the coverage. Therefore, property insurance is also included in the scope of home insurance. All these constitute the scope of the guarantee. Coverage expands or contracts according to the number of insurance risks. The main factor that also determines the premium in home insurance is how much risk is included in the policy. There are different premium practices in each insurance company in Turkey according to the scope of insurance packages. Competing with each other, insurance companies offer attractive offers to those who will take out insurance. At this point, the important thing is that the person who will take out the insurance correctly chooses the elements of risk. According to this, the insurance can take out the insurance by choosing the company that offers the most appropriate coverage package. The optimum level of insurance premium is formed for the insured.

While making risk calculations, the cost of housing and goods is determined as well as the risk subject to insurance. Since compensation will be applied over these costs, they are two important account elements for the calculation of the premium. Housing construction is the fee obtained from the delivery of the building's construction of the house with the total compensation calculated from the outside of the building. In other words, housing construction is not the value of the building, but the reconstruction. The Housing Construction Cost Chart, which is jointly determined by the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization of the Republic of Turkey and the Ministry of Finance, is taken into account the square meter construction cost of the house. Items belonging to the insured person and family members living with her in the house and not included in the fixtures of the house are accepted as a general definition.

In housing insurance, we can give examples of average premiums over the average housing value and general average property prices. For example, the average annual premium of housing insurance with an average housing construction cost of 250000TL (16600 USD) and no property coverage would be 300TL (20USD). When 100000 TL is added to the policy in this example, the average annual premium will be 500 TL (33USD). Payments are made in Turkish Lira (TL). Prices vary according to insurance companies and the coverage packages they offer. These are the average prices for the last period of 2021 and are the average prices that will continue to be applied as of 2022.

What are the Advantages of Home Insurance?

Home insurance coverage covers a very wide area and is a type of insurance that provides many services. Although the main coverage issues of home insurance are risks such as fire, natural disasters, and theft, they are not limited to these. House insurance, which is a type of insurance with such wide coverage, brings many advantages.

• Comprehensive Protection Against Major Risks: The home insurance policy provides comprehensive compensation for the damages that will occur in case of major risks such as fire, flood, flood, storm, burglary, or social disturbances.
• Final Solution to Plumbing Problems: Housing insurance optionally also ensures the installations inside the house. Many services such as locksmith, water and electrical installation works, and even boiler maintenance and carpet cleaning are covered by the insurance company.
• Privileged Service to Tenants: Only the tenant's household items can be insured. The tenant's household goods are insured against all kinds of risks. Landlords can also ensure only the parts of the houses they rent that are related to their responsibilities.
• Home Insurance that Insures People: Home insurance can also provide coverage against accidents that occur inside the house. According to the principles in the policy, compensation is paid to the heirs in case of death and compensation in case of disability.
• Protection Against the Effect of Inflation: Housing insurance protects the value of the house against the effect of inflation and applies an increase in the insurance cost at the rate of inflation. While determining the increase rate, the data of the Turkish Statistical Institute is taken as a basis. Thus, in case of damage, it can cover the damage.
• Additional Guarantees Advantage: Material damages resulting from strikes and terrorist acts, damages resulting from natural disasters such as fire, lightning strikes, floods, and tornadoes, losses resulting from accidents such as flooding, natural gas explosion, financial losses resulting from theft, damages caused by the collision of air, sea or land vehicles, loss of rent and debris removal costs
• Additional services offered by insurance companies together with home insurance: Emergency medical assistance, locksmith, plumber, paying bills, ambulance, companion.

What are the Disadvantages of Home Insurance?

Cost. Homeowners insurance is pricey. The expense to keep a house insurance policy is significant due to the potentially high monthly premiums. The low deductible you'll have to pay in the event of a claim is in part to blame for these expensive premiums.

Not all types of damage to your home are covered by home insurance. The policy, for example, will not provide coverage for all losses brought on by storms and water damage in some locations. As a result, it's crucial to understand which each insurance particularly covers.

Conditions and terms. Because they are buried in the terms and conditions of the policy, there may be a number of hidden charges associated with home insurance that policyholders are unaware of.

For homeowners, selecting a home insurance policy is a significant decision. Understanding the benefits and drawbacks of home insurance as well as the coverage it provides may you in your decision regarding the best course of action.