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17 Sept 2026

How to make a home insurance claim

Find out the steps you need to take when making a claim – and which providers are the best (and worst) at handling claims

Dean SobersSenior researcher & writer

Dean is an award-winning personal finance writer who’s spent over 15 years helping consumers navigate the tangled and fascinating world of insurance.

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We've partnered with MoneySuperMarket to help you compare a wide range of home insurance options in one place, with added insight from Which?

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This is a Which? exclusive, so you won't find our scores or expert analysis on other comparison sites.

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Dive into the detail with our expert reviews

We rated 177 elements of each policy, covering buildings, contents and admin points such as fees.
We asked 3,419 home insurance customers who made a claim within the past two years to score their insurer.

In this article

Which are the best home insurers for claims?
What should I do if I need to make a home insurance claim?
Where do home insurance claims go wrong?
Home insurance claims: frequently asked questions

Which are the best home insurers for claims?

The acid test for any home insurance provider is how it handles your claim.

We surveyed 3,419 policyholders who had made a home insurance claim in the past two years about their experiences. The table shows how 22 insurers were rated for claims handling based on this customer feedback.

As well as giving their overall verdict on how their most recent claim was handled (the claims score), claimants also gave their view on how speedily the insurer had dealt with the claim and how well they'd been kept up to date.

Search for your insurer, or find a better one, using our table:

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RECOMMENDED PROVIDER NFU Mutual	86%
Bank of Scotland	82%
1st Central	81%
Allianz	81%
Aviva	81%
Nationwide Building Society	81%
RECOMMENDED PROVIDER Tesco Insurance	81%
Axa	80%
Admiral	79%
First Direct	79%
Lloyds	79%
NatWest	79%
Direct Line	78%
Co-op Insurance	77%
HSBC	77%
Churchill	76%
Santander	75%
LV	74%
Esure	72%	n/a
Halifax	72%
Hastings Direct	68%
Policy Expert	53%	n/a

Customer survey: The claims score is based on an online survey of 3,419 members of the public who own home insurance and had made a claim in the two years prior to taking the survey. Survey conducted in May-June 2026. The sample for some brands was boosted to reach minimum sample size for reporting. The final data has not been weighted and may not be representative of the customers of each home insurance company. The 'claims score' is based on how the insurer handled customers' most recent claim: a statistical analysis is applied to the customers' satisfaction with the brand and likelihood to recommend. 'n/a' means not enough responses to include a score or star rating.

Sample sizes: 1st Central (87), Admiral (245), Allianz (316), Aviva (592), Axa (127), Bank of Scotland (63), Churchill (255), Co-op Insurance (52), Direct Line (107), Esure (45), First Direct (76) Halifax (192), Hastings Direct (107), HSBC (116), Lloyds Bank (142), LV (138), Nationwide Building Society (84), NatWest (90), NFU Mutual (115), Policy Expert (54), Santander (65), Tesco Insurance (129).

Please note that this article is for information purposes only and doesn't constitute advice. Please refer to the insurer's T&Cs before committing to any financial products.

What should I do if I need to make a home insurance claim?

Watch our video, or scroll down for step-by-step instructions.

1. Prepare yourself in advance

It's impossible to predict when you may need to claim (if at all). However, there are steps you can take to prepare yourself.

If any of your items are stolen or damaged, you'll often need proof, such as a receipt. Whenever you make a big purchase, it's wise to keep the receipt in a safe place or take a photograph of the item.

It's also important to keep your property in a good state of repair. Home insurers offer buildings insurance on the condition that your home is maintained regularly.

Claims are often turned down if this is found not to be the case, especially with storm damage to a roof. Make sure your roof is inspected every few years and keep proof that this has been done.

2. Call your insurer promptly

Many insurers will give you up to 180 days to make a claim on your home insurance, but it's always best to get in touch as soon as possible.

Insurers like to handle large claims as soon as possible, especially if there's a flood or fire. Delaying a claim could also worsen the damage.

3. Don't throw away damaged items

Although it might be tempting to do a complete clean-up following a fire or a flood, don't throw away damaged items. Your home insurance company will probably want to assess what you've lost, so keep the contents unless you're told you can bin them.

You should also avoid redecorating immediately in the event of a flood. A property can take a long time to fully dry out, and lifting a wet carpet could mean it shrinks.

4. Take photographs

When you submit your claim, your home insurance provider will ask you for a full rundown of what has happened, as well as evidence.

Taking photos or making a short video of the damage to your property and its contents can be useful in case there's any dispute.

5. Get help from a loss assessor

Taking on a home insurance provider in the event of a large claim can be daunting. Usually an insurer will send round a loss adjuster to look at your property, and they will decide how your claim will progress.

However, you may wish to have someone working with you personally to also have a look at the claim.

If you bought your home insurance policy via a broker, you might be able to turn to them for help. Or you can appoint a loss assessor – a claims specialist who looks after the interest of the customer. To pay for their services, you'll either be charged an upfront fee or a percentage of the claim.

Find out more: best home insurance 2026.

Expert tip

Think carefully about cash settlements

Insurers settle claims in one of three ways. They'll either organise repairs or source replacements, pay you cash to do this yourself, or a mixture of these. Among our survey respondents, insurers settled in cash in 44% of claims.

But if you're offered a cash lump sum – no matter how generous it might look on paper – it's vital that you do your homework and understand how far it will actually go towards putting you back where you were before the claim. This isn't always clear, and can require a specialist evaluation, particularly in a complex buildings claim.

Once you accept a payout, the insurer has no further responsibility for your claim.

Find out more: search for a Which? Trusted Trader near you.

Where do home insurance claims go wrong?

There's a multitude of reasons you might need to use your home insurance – and many ways in which claims can go wrong.

Issues that Which? has repeatedly identified across various kinds of insurance include customers not receiving clear information about the claims process, being asked to repeatedly supply documents and evidence, not receiving updates from insurers when claims stall, and not being given proper explanations for why a claim wasn't accepted.

Home insurance claims: frequently asked questions

If your claim doesn't pan out as you expect, or you feel that your home insurance provider has treated you unfairly, don't be afraid to make a complaint.

Speak to your insurer first but, if it isn't proving helpful (and you've exhausted the complaints process outlined in your policy document), take the matter up with the Financial Ombudsman Service online, or by calling 0800 023 4567.

You usually have six months from the time you reach deadlock with your insurer in which to make a complaint. The FOS's decision is binding on companies but not on the consumer, so you could, if you wish, refer the matter to court.

Should I pay an excess to claim?

Excesses help keep your home insurance premium low, marking a threshold of what you're happy – or required – to pay yourself in the event of a claim.

Therefore, the nearer the claim amount is to your excess, the more negligible the benefit is in claiming. Below are two claims scenarios to demonstrate how the impact of the excess can affect whether or not it's worth claiming.

Scenario 1

Reason for claiming	Cost to you	Insurer pays you	Worth claiming?
Your house is burgled	£800 to repair your door and to replace stolen items	£725 (£800 minus £75 excess)	Yes. The insurer pays the lion's share of what you need to get back on your feet

Scenario 2

Reason for claiming	Cost to you	Insurer pays you	Worth claiming?
You break a radio worth £100	£100 to buy a replacement	£25 (£100 minus £75 excess)	Possibly. This could pay off in the short term but if it bumps your premiums up by as little as £25 it will cost you money in the end

A major cause for hesitation can be the potential impact on your home insurance premiums: recent claims or incidents affect the insurer's view of your level of risk, and so it may adjust your price accordingly.

Unfortunately, you can't know in advance what your next home insurance renewal premium will be.

Generally speaking, though, a minor, isolated incident – such as a broken or lost laptop – is less likely to lead to painful increases than something more serious or complex – like a burglary or damage to the building itself.

Whether you choose to claim or not, be alert at renewal time. If your home insurance premium has soared, consider switching to a new provider or haggle with your current one for a better deal.

No one wants to have to claim on their home insurance.

Often, you're not required to report every minor incident of loss or damage if you don't want to claim. This can vary between home insurers, though, so be sure to check the terms and conditions of yours.

However, you must report:

any incident that has affected the habitability or security of your property
damage that could indirectly lead to a future claim
where a third party was involved.

When it comes to renewing or taking out home insurance, some insurers will also ask about any losses that could have led to a claim – even if you didn't pursue one.