A great number of consumers try and reduce their home insurance costs by agreeing to a high voluntary excess, but this may not save money in the long term, according to Moneysupermarket.com.
The comparison website has conducted research to look into the financial impact of agreeing to a high voluntary excess in exchange for a lower premium for home insurance . The research used a range of voluntary excess levels from £0 to £500 and found that there was a fall in premiums, as expected, from £192 to £174, or ten per cent, when comparing a £100 excess to £300.
The findings also showed that having an excess over £400 actually increased the premiums by over ten percent.
Julie Owens, head of home insurance at moneysupermarket.com, advises: “Homeowners are feeling the pinch this autumn with the cost of everything from food to gas and electricity on the rise. When choosing your home cover, it may be tempting to save money by increasing your excess levels. But our research clearly shows it may not save you as much money as you thought. In fact you could pay just £9 more on average for £100 voluntary excess compared to a £400 voluntary excess.”