The Research Department uses data from its Aequos database to analyse buildings insurance sold direct, pet insurance for cats, and annual travel cover offered through brokers

Direct buildings insurance
The onslaught of direct writers into the home insurance market shows no signs of relaxing - customers are still being told to save money by going direct - but how does the cover vary between the direct insurers?

We looked at the buildings covers from the leading players and discovered that, overall, there is little to separate the first three major players - esure, Direct Line and Eagle Star. In fact, for the very core of buildings covers there is little to separate most of the insurers. It is only around the margins that a few providers begin to emerge as leaders.

Esure, the Halifax venture headed up by Peter Wood, edges into the lead. Key benefits of the cover include:

  • Standard cover for glass breakage and damage to underground services
  • Optional accidental damage (AD) cover
  • Alternative accommodation cover up to 20% of the buildings sum insured
  • £2m of liability cover
  • Optional legal expenses cover up to £50,000
  • No claim discounts (NCD) of up to 45%, including NCD protection at renewal (for a small premium).

    One failing of the Direct Line policy is the lack of NCD - which a number of the other insurers provide.

    Pet insurance
    It used to be said that a man's best friend is his dog, but no longer - the most popular pet in the UK is now a cat. Many owners worry about what will happen if their pet falls ill, and many insurers now offer some form of pet insurance. Most insurers will cover vets' fees, but many also cover the costs of advertising and reward if a cat goes astray, or the costs of holiday cancellation if the cat falls ill.

    We looked at the policies from a wide range of companies. Perhaps not surprisingly some of the best policies were from companies with a history of pet insurance. Equine & Livestock's Monthly Platinum policy covers cats up to eight years of age and offers a wide range of covers, including:

  • Vets fees up to £6,000
  • Death by illness up to £1,500
  • Up to £2,500 for holiday cancellation or curtailment in the event of cat illness
  • Cover for complementary medicine treatment if recommended by a vet
  • Excesses from £49 to £65, and premiums from £6.25 to £9.25 per month, depending on place of residence.

    Annual travel insurance
    If they haven't already done so, many people will be looking to book their summer holidays in the next few weeks. Last month we looked at single trip policies sold through high street banks. This month we analyse some of the annual travel insurance policies on offer through brokers.

    We chose policies for travel to Europe, with premiums for single travellers in the range £45 to £55, and families in the range £65to £110 (excluding any additional premium for winter sports covers). All of the policies analysed allowed winter sports either as standard or as an optional extra.

    The Groupama policy stands as a clear leader on the criteria analysed, with the Biba scheme and FM Green not far behind. Key features of the policy include:

  • Individual trips of up to 90 days each
  • £5m medical expenses and £50,000 of personal accident cover
  • £500 of cover for cash
  • New for old cover on items less than two years old
  • £2m of liability cover
  • £25 medical excess, with £50 excess for most other covers.
  • Family rate allows children to be covered when not travelling with their parents.

    Source: Aequos - for details: www.trd.co.uk , freephone 0808 1000804

    NOTES:

  • These charts use The Research Department's unique Data Numerical Analysis (DNA) scoring system
  • DNA illustrates the relative positioning of a product based on selected criteria
  • The criteria used in this chart are a representative sample only and may not be relevant in all cases
  • Other criteria are available and may give different results
  • When used to match products to a client's circumstances, DNA can show how closely a product matches those requirements.

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