Home Insurance: what you need to know about your own home

For your own home

You are not insuring “a home”. You are insuring your own home.

A flat built in 2005, a stone house from 1950, a detached home renovated three years ago or a holiday house left closed for six months a year might all look like simply “a residence” on a form.

In reality, they do not carry the same risks, do not need the same protection and should not be insured mechanically in the same way.

That is why we will not start with packages and prices here.

We will start with the home.

What kind of home do you have? When was it built? What has changed since then? How is it used today? What do you actually want to protect?

The answers to these questions begin to form the real insurance picture of your home.

For your own home

Start with what you actually want to protect

What are you actually insuring with home insurance?

If you are thinking right now:

“I want to insure my home”

what do you picture as “home”?

I think most of us would first picture the building itself: the walls, roof, columns, window and door frames, and floors.

But is that all?

A home is not just the building.

It is also what is inside it.

And in some cases, it is also damage that starts in your home and ends up… in someone else's home.

If the kitchen burns, a pipe breaks inside a wall or major damage hits the roof, we are talking about the building itself and what is permanently attached to it.

But if the fire destroys your furniture, appliances, clothes or equipment, we are talking about something different: your home's contents.

And if a burst pipe in your flat floods the ceiling below, a third issue comes into play: your liability towards another person.

So when you say “I want to insure my home”, the first question is not just how much it costs.

It is:

Which of these things do I actually want to protect?

See in detail what home insurance can cover →

See how home contents are insured →

For your own home

When was your home built?

In Greece, many homes pass from one generation to the next.

A grandfather's village house may pass to his children and later to his grandchildren. The home our parents built and where we grew up may eventually become ours.

So there are many homes of considerable age.

And a home's age matters for insurance.

Not only because an older home may have more wear or problems, but also because it was built under different construction and seismic rules from a newer one.

If, for example, a home was built before 1960, earthquake cover is more likely to be difficult to obtain or to require a special assessment by the insurer.

The first Greek Seismic Code came into force in 1959.

A house built before then may therefore have been designed without the seismic requirements introduced later.

Age can affect other risks too. A house built in 1980 that has never had its electrical installations renewed, for example, may need a different assessment for fire or short-circuit risk.

But the basic principle is this:

Age is an indication. It is not a diagnosis.

An old home that has been substantially renovated may present a much better insurance picture and find it much easier to obtain additional cover.

But what does “renovated home” really mean?

We will look at that next.

See how the construction year affects earthquake cover →

Source for the regulatory framework: OASP — Greek Seismic Code. Acceptance of cover depends on the insurer's assessment.

For your own home

What does “renovated home” really mean?

Over time and with use, a home's main systems wear out: electrical and plumbing installations, pipes and the roof where there is one.

And as wear increases, so does the chance of damage: a burst pipe, a short circuit or a problem with the roof.

That is why, when discussing renovation for insurance purposes, we are not only interested in whether the kitchen, tiles or wall colours have changed.

We want to know whether the parts that actually affect risk have been replaced or renewed, such as electrical and plumbing installations, pipes and the roof.

In some cases, work may even have been carried out on the structure itself.

The word “renovated” alone therefore does not tell us enough.

The right questions are:

What exactly changed?

Which likelihood of damage was reduced by that change?

For your own home

How is the home used?

The insurer does not only look at who owns the home. It also looks at how it is used.

A home may be a main residence, a holiday home, a long-term rental or used for short-term letting.

A main residence is a home where someone regularly lives for much of the year.

A holiday home is used occasionally: for one or two months a year, at weekends, on holidays or generally for shorter periods.

If I own a home but rent it out long term and it is the tenant's main residence, it is treated as a main residence for property insurance purposes.

If I have a second home, in a village or another city, and use it as a secondary residence, it may be insured as a holiday or secondary home, depending on the insurer's terms.

But what if I live far away, in another city or even abroad?

We may need to declare whether someone supervises the home and how often.

And what if the home is let out short term?

It is then declared as a short-term rental home and placed in a different insurance category.

What changes in practice in the policy?

Pricing usually changes first, with a holiday home often costing more.

Beyond that, depending on the insurer and the property, there may be different terms, exclusions or covers that are unavailable.

A home occupied every day does not present the same insurance picture as one that may remain closed for weeks or months.

How a home is used changes how the insurer sees the risk.

If you let to visitors, explore short-term rental insurance →

For your own home

Does the home have a mortgage?

If the home has a mortgage, another factor enters the insurance picture:

the bank.

When a property is used as security for a loan, the bank usually asks for it to be insured against specified risks.

These often include fire and earthquake, while other covers may be required depending on the bank and loan.

But this does not mean you must take the insurance the bank itself proposes.

In many cases, you can provide a policy from an insurer of your choice, provided it meets the loan agreement's requirements.

And there is an important detail here:

what the bank requires to protect its security is different from what your own home actually needs.

The bank may ask for the basic covers it considers necessary for the loan.

But you may need more: contents, liability, water damage or other covers that are not directly connected to the bank's requirement.

So if the home has a mortgage, the right question is not only:

“What does the bank require?”

It is also:

“What does my home actually need beyond that?”

For your own home

Cover on paper does not always mean protection in practice

Seeing the words “earthquake”, “water damage” or “theft” in a policy does not, by itself, mean you know what you actually have.

The right question is:

Up to what amount am I covered? What amount remains mine to pay? Are there limits? Are there situations where cover does not apply?

This is often where the real difference between two policies lies.

They may list almost identical covers and work very differently when damage occurs.

To understand this, you only need four basic concepts.

Sum insured: the amount for which you have insured what you want to protect.

Deductible: the part of the loss that remains yours to pay.

Limit or sublimit: the maximum amount payable under a particular cover.

Exclusion: circumstances in which a cover listed in the policy does not apply.

You do not need to learn insurance terminology.

You need to know what to ask before you actually need the policy.

Savings or insurance for major damage? →

See how to calculate the right sum insured →

For your own home

For how much should you insure your home?

Your home may have a market value of €200,000.

That does not mean it should be insured for €200,000.

Market value is affected by location, views, the land, demand and much more.

For building insurance, we are interested in something different:

If you had to rebuild it, how much would it cost?

That is the sum insured we are interested in.

If it is lower than it should be, the home risks being inadequately insured. If it is excessively high, that does not mean a claim will pay more than the actual loss.

The goal is therefore not a large number.

It is the right number.

And that needs reviewing over the years because construction costs change.

What to check in the sum insured and terms before choosing →

For your own home

And earthquake?

In Greece, this is one of the first covers worth considering.

But the right question is not simply:

“Do I have earthquake cover?”

It is:

“Can my own home be insured against earthquake, for what amount and on what terms?”

The building's age, construction and, in some cases, work carried out on it can affect the answer.

Especially for older or unusual homes, “covered or not covered” should therefore never be taken for granted.

Read the detailed home and earthquake insurance guide →

For your own home

What does ENFIA have to do with insurance?

When the applicable conditions are met, home insurance may also be linked to a reduction in ENFIA property tax.

That is a real financial benefit.

But we must not confuse two different things.

The conditions a policy must meet for the tax reduction are different from the amount actually needed to insure the home properly.

ENFIA should not determine how much it costs to rebuild your home.

See the current conditions for the ENFIA reduction →

For your own home

How do you compare two insurance proposals?

The first price may be €120 and the second €150.

The first seems cheaper.

Until you notice that it has a lower sum insured, a higher deductible, a smaller limit on an important cover, or that something you need is missing entirely.

Then you are no longer comparing €120 with €150.

You are comparing two different policies.

Before deciding which is cheaper, check whether they insure the same thing, for the same amount and on similar terms.

Then compare the price.

See what to check before choosing home insurance →

For your own home

Do you already have home insurance?

Then you do not need to start by looking for another policy.

First look at the one you have.

What home has been declared? What is insured? For how much? What are the main deductibles and limits? Has anything changed in the home since the policy was issued?

If the policy still fits your home and your needs, there is no reason to change it just to get another price.

But if there is a gap, you at least know what needs correcting.

I want to review my existing policy →

For your own home

Do you not yet have a policy?

Do not start with “which package should I buy?”

Start with your home.

What kind of home is it? When was it built and what has actually been renovated? How is it used? Do you want to protect the building, contents or both? Is there a mortgage? What damage would be genuinely difficult to pay for yourself?

A serious insurance proposal should begin with these answers.

Not with a ready-made package that simply has a price.

First download the checklist of information you need →

I have the information and want to explore my options →

For your own home

What is your own situation?

Not every home needs the same things.

A new flat occupied all year, a renovated house from 1950, a holiday home closed for months, a mortgaged home and a property let to visitors each need a different discussion.

That is why we started this guide with the home itself rather than with insurance covers.

If you understand what home you have, which risk you want to transfer to the insurer and what the policy actually says, you have already done most of the work.

For your own home

If you remember only five things

Do not insure your home mechanically because “everyone does it”.

Declare accurately what kind of home it is and how it is used.

Distinguish the building from contents and liability towards others.

Do not only check whether cover exists. Check its amount, deductible, limits and exclusions.

And do not choose the price first and then try to understand what you bought.

First understand what you need. Then look for a policy that covers it properly.

Q&A — Frequently asked questions