1. What Is the Total Excess?
Add your compulsory excess and your voluntary excess together. This is the amount you will pay out of pocket on any claim before the insurer contributes. Make sure it is an amount you could actually afford at short notice.
Also check whether additional excesses apply for specific events — many home policies add a separate, higher excess for subsidence, flood, or escape of water claims.
2. Are the Sum Insured Values Accurate?
For home insurance, is the buildings sum insured equal to the full reinstatement cost (not the market value)? For contents, does the sum insured reflect what it would actually cost to replace everything at today's prices?
Underinsurance activates the average clause — which reduces your payout proportionally. This catches policyholders off guard more than almost any other mechanism.
3. What Are the Main Exclusions?
For the most likely claim scenario you might face, is it covered or excluded? If you live in a flood-risk area, is flood covered — and at what excess? If you are a professional driver, is business use included?
Focus Area
Do not read every exclusion. Identify your top three most likely claim scenarios and check each one specifically. This is much faster and more useful than a general review.
4. What Notification Requirements Exist?
What must you do — and in what timeframe — to make a valid claim? Does theft require a Garda report within 24 hours? Does the insurer require written notification within 7 days of an event?
Know these before you need them. In a crisis, missing a notification window is easy, and the consequences are significant.
5. Is There a Single-Item Limit on Contents?
Most contents policies cap the amount payable for any single item. If you own jewellery, art, a bicycle, or electronics worth more than the single-item limit (typically €1,500–€2,500), those items are not fully covered unless separately specified.
6. What Happens to Cover If the Property Is Unoccupied?
If you travel for more than 30–60 days, rent out your property on a short-term basis, or leave a second property vacant, does your cover change? Most policies reduce or eliminate certain covers once a property is unoccupied beyond a threshold period.
7. Does the Policy Cover All the People Who Need It?
For motor insurance: are all regular drivers named, and does the policy extend to occasional drivers? For home insurance: does cover extend to family members living in the property?
For life or income protection: are all insureds and beneficiaries correctly named in the schedule?
8. Is the Insurer Financially Rated?
Price matters less if the insurer cannot pay claims. Check the insurer's financial strength rating (AM Best, Fitch, or Standard & Poor's). For Irish policyholders, also confirm the insurer is authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland or an equivalent EU regulator.
9. What Are the Cancellation Terms?
If you need to cancel mid-term, what are the charges? Most Irish policies use short-rate cancellation — you will receive less than a pro-rata refund of the unexpired premium. Some policies apply minimum retained premiums regardless of when you cancel.
10. Is There a Claims Satisfaction Record?
Premium price is what you pay. Claims satisfaction is what you get. Check the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO) annual reports for complaints data by insurer, and Trustpilot reviews focused specifically on claims experience — not general customer service.
Final Check
After reviewing these ten points, ask yourself: if the worst thing happened tomorrow, am I confident this policy would pay out? If you are not sure, find out before you buy — not after.