Wicklow Homeowners Have Highest Value of Contents Insured

Homes in Wicklow, Dublin and Kildare have the highest value contents in the State, according to an AA Home Insurance analysis of the value of contents insured in houses across Ireland.

Homeowners in Co. Wicklow insure their contents for an average of €46,092.16, down slightly from the 2016 average of €46,327.50 for Wicklow homeowners. The analysis found that the top 5 counties by average value of contents insured is largely unchanged from 2017, with the exception of Waterford homeowners now having the fourth highest average contents insured value at €42,554.56, up from fifth in 2017.

The analysis found that homeowners in Galway had increased their average contents insured by the greatest amount, rising from €38,944.96 in 2017 to €40,197.41 this year. Meanwhile homeowners in Wexford had, on average, reduced the value of their contents insured by the greatest amount with the county’s average value insured falling by just over €4,000 from €41,269.36 to €36,891.33.

Commenting on the findings, AA Consumer Affairs Director Conor Faughnan stated “At first glance the value of contents insured in homes across Ireland may surprise some people, but over a lifetime of home-ownership you’d be surprised how quickly the value of what’s in your home can rise. If the worst were to happen, for example a fire causing serious damage to your home, the expense of replacing the items you’ve lost could add even more concern to what would already be a difficult scenario to deal with.”

“Beyond simply ensuring that you have cover for your valuable items, it’s important that you set some time aside annually or at least every few years to re-assess the level of your cover to ensure you’re not overpaying.” Faughnan added. “Some items will start to depreciate in value as they become older, but continuing to insure these as their original value would lead to you paying more for cover than you need to. If you do have to make a claim, your insurance company will payout what they deem to be the current value of the lost items meaning overvaluing these items has no advantage for you.”

At the other end of the scale, homeowners in Co. Leitrim had the lowest average value insured at €30,985.84 according to the AA Home Insurance analysis.

The AA advises householders to think carefully about the value they choose as both over and under-insuring your belongings can be a mistake. If you pick an amount that is too high then you will pay too much in your premium even though an insurance company will only pay you for the value of what you have lost. Insure for too little and an insurance company will reduce the payout proportionately even for a smaller claim.