Simulsat V Torresat

Hi all,

Doesn't time fly?  It will be a year next month since we completed on our apartment in DV, which means that our buildings/contents insurance will become due for renewal.  In the first year we had no choice but to take the policy organised by our mortgage provider, however this was expensive for what it covered and so we would like to arrange our own this time round. 

Can any other owners recommend companies they have used?  We would like to use someone who provides the policies in English, rather than Spanish so we know for certain exactly what is or is not covered!

Any suggestions greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

Michelle & Alex

I am in the same situation having completed at the beginning of Feb last year . We  took the buildings and contents insurance with Banco Andalucia who also arranged the mortgage.   Because we rent out our apartment at times I subsequently took out public liability insurance with a company in Gibraltar.   I was thinking of getting quotes off of them for the buildings and contents but its probably too late now as the BA policies have probably automatically renewed themselves.  In fact, I have just checked my account and the premium for next year has just been taken by direct debit.  Oh well, Maybe next year !!!.

I can let anyone have the details of the company in Gibraltar if they are interested, I was told its better to have an English speaking company do the insurance especially when you need to make a claim but I am not sure how much of an issue this is.  Does anyone else have any views on this?

Steve

This message was last edited by slacey99 on 2/5/2008.

This message was last edited by slacey99 on 2/5/2008.

My mortgage holder/bank  charged me  334 Euros which seems a lot considering the external walls are already covered by the Community Insurance.

Last I obtained  one quote in the UK for up to 20k Euro in contents ( although  I estimate it's well below  half that in my place)  and that quote came to over
£300 pounds  - almost as much as my house in the UK.   But I live in a very low crime area in the UK and   DV is probably rated as a high crime area.

My thoughts are that most insurers policies  are broad brush and assume that you rent it and have high claim rates.

I wonder you and find  policies for low risk  owners.  e.g. those who do not  rent and  only use it for say 10 weeks a year ?

Paul

Barclays Spain charged us a total of € 222 for buildings and contents cover of € 15,000

Michael

Hi all,

Started to look at this in more detail today. 

In response to Steve I would personally prefer an English speaking company if possible.  My Spanish is not that good when it comes to sorting out things as important as a claim!

How have you worked out your Insured Buildings Sum figure?  I know this is the rebuild value, rather than the purchase figure.  Anyone any ideas?  We have a 2 bed, 2 bath in Block 12.

Any advice appreciated.

Many thanks

Michelle

Michelle,

I too have started to look at this for a 2/2  and intend to ask my mortgage bank what figure they insured.  Will share the answer here.

Another question I have, if anyone knows the answer:  How much do Banco Andalucia charge to "approve"  an alternative insurance policy  and do they

charge more if it is written in English?

regards,

Paul

Hi Paul,

You have worried me a little here!  Our mortgage is with Banco Halifax and I thought that I only had to take their buildings/contents insurance for the 1st year.  I then presumed it was like in the UK and you could go with whoever you like.  Am I wrong and you are saying that if I go with another company Halifax have to approve it and they may charge me for the privilege?

One of the reasons we want to switch is that we knew we had a buildings/contents policy with the mortgage, but we had no idea what it covered.  We completed in March 2007 and chased Halifax constantly until we finally received a copy of our policy documents in September 2007!

I have dug out the rubbish scanned copy we have and it would appear we have buildings insurance of 100,000 euro - is it me or does that seem a bit on the low side?

Thanks

Michelle

I'm still waiting for a reply from my mortgage bank.  I will be phoning them on Saturday so should know the answers by then.

100,000 for the building might be reasonable.

The price you paid includes  land,  common community facilities including roads, swimming pools, street lights, garage and store room, lifts, gardens  and other common areas.
The price you paid also includes white goods of say 2000 Euros which are now covered on your contents.
I believe that the common walls, floor and ceiling and general building infrastructure and infrastructure supply of electrics and water is covered the community insurance.

Do anyone know the the boundaries of the communal insurance.

So your insurance has to cover internal walls, doors, windows, electrics, tiles, plumbing, fixtures etc.  for all of that 100,000 Euros sound generous.

Best to check that your insurance covers vandalism and break-ins.  I guess yours does otherwise you would have mentioned the point.
It seems that some insurers in Spain offer that element of cover  as an optional extra.

The figure of 100,000 Euros is  useful to know.

regards,
Paul

Update:
Thanks to the advice from this thread I've taken out insurance for a reduced cost of 224 Euros. What's more I was supplied with the policy in both English and Spanish.


Before taking our the policy I cautiously wrote to  Banco Andalucia in advance  advising them I was shopping around for insurance  and asking about the process.
They were also invited them to provide a competitive quote.
They quoted  293 Euro ( a reduction from last years 334) for a 2 bedroomed apartment.

In response to questions on the process  the bank only asked that I faxed them a copy of my new insurance policy when I had it. 


So I proceeded to shop around and found was most satisfied with the result.
Having one provided in both English and Spanish I happyly faxed them a copy of the Spanish version.
After faxing the bank with the policy as they requested they now write back with:-
"In the new insurance with Lloyds you have to include a clause saying that there is a mortgage with Banco de Andalucia with an outstanding balance of [xxx.xxx] Euros."

They  are just so fxxxxxx  infuriating.  You ask them for this kind of information in advance but they still tell you afterwards. !$%&^%$£"&

So for anyone else moring your insurance from Banco Andalucia - now you know.

Paul

Paul, we also have our insurance with a company through Banco Andalucia and only noticed last month the direct debit from our account for the next year!  So, considering ours was over 100 euros more expensive than the quote you received, I think we'll be taking out our own next year too!!  And shall make sure that we write to the bank first AND include the bit about the mortgage!!!

Thanks for the info.



This message was last edited by Pitby on 3/24/2008.

Our mortgage is with Barclays ES and their policy which covers the building and € 15,000 of contents was arranged by them through Groupama and cost € 234.38 The policy booklet is entirely in English.

It is definitely worth hunting around

 

Hi all,

We went with a UK based company in the end, so we paid in £'s.  We paid about £180 for buildings & contents on our 2 bedroom apartment with accidental damage (by us, family or friends and tenants included).  Policy in English and certificate in both English & Spanish.  English support line if we need to make a claim. 

As you know if you don't catch it in time, the banks just renew the policy and take the money from your spanish bank account.  The company we used have a dedicated Spanish employee who contacts your bank to inform them you are not renewing with them, so you don't have to do anything.  Dealing with Spanish banks is a nightmare at the best of times, so this element of their service was worth its weight in gold to me.

Would recommend them - fantastic service.  Send us a PM if you would like their details.

I would advise all of you to put a note in your diary about 2 months before your policy is due to expire so you can start to investigate other options.  It is worth noting that you can't leave it until the last minute as banks often take the money 2-3 weeks before your policy is due to start, so you need to catch it before then.

Regards

Michelle & Alex.