Home Insurance and Kitchen Fires
Tuesday, 30 August 2011
Home insurance can protect your home financially in case of a fire. Your home insurance policy - whether you have buildings insurance, contents insurance or combined buildings and contents insurance - will usually cover fire damage as part of a standard insurance policy.
Loss or damage to your home or contents caused by fire or smoke damage will usually be covered by your building and contents home insurance policy up to the amount stated in your schedule. Your home insurance will therefore cover the financial cost of belongings and parts of the building which might be completely destroyed, as well as belongings and building structures which are rendered useless because of fire or smoke damage. You should be aware however, that home insurance does not usually cover smoke damage from gradual exposure.
If the emergency services have to force entry into your home because of a fire, your home insurance company may help cover the cost of damage caused. Perhaps the emergency services have to break down a door or smash a window to rescue you and your family, for example, which could cause additional costs for repair or replacement.
It is your responsibility to keep your fire alarm in good working order, and to ensure the safety of high risk areas such as your fireplace or kitchen. As well as a good fire alarm, you should have a fire blanket to hand in the kitchen, as well as a small fire extinguisher for emergency fires in the home. Be sure you know how to use these extinguishers, however, as some kitchen fires (in particular oil fires) should be extinguished with a blanket only. You should be very careful when fighting a fire yourself, as you could cause more damage and injury than you avoid if you tackle the fire incorrectly.
Kitchen fires are particularly common in the home, and they will usually be covered by home insurance. The National Fire Protection Association reports that cooking is the largest cause of home fires and home fire injuries; in fact, 66% of home cooking fires start with the ignition of food or other materials for cooking. Cooking fires are also responsible for 40% of all reported home structure fires and 36% of injuries in the home.
Although your home insurance policy does protect you financially from some of the costs associated with fire and smoke damage, you will want to avoid this situation in the first place. Be sure that you and your whole family are fire safety conscious when using candles, open flames or cooking at high temperatures so that you do not suffer an accidental fire in the home or in the kitchen.
Company Profile:
John Lewis Insurance offers a range of insurance services selected by the John Lewis Partnership. These include car, pet, life, travel, wedding, event and home insurance products.
For more information about John Lewis Insurance please visit the website here - www.johnlewis-insurance.com.
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