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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 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
We've reviewed three 1st Central's home insurance policies – its standard Home policy, a stripped-back Essentials policy and a more comprehensive Premier policy.
We also surveyed 79 customers of 1st Central who have recently made a home insurance claim.
You can buy 1st Central's policies direct or via comparison websites. It also offers car insurance, and its policies are underwritten by 1st Central Underwriting (previously known as Skyfire Insurance Company Limited).
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.
1st Central earned a very respectable customer score but only middling ratings for its cover.
79%
Policies
out of 21 home insurers with a customer score
See how this compares with the best home insurance, or read more about how we rate home insurance.
We reviewed three 1st Central policies. Select a policy from our table to see what it offers and what we scored it.
| Buildings - Alternative accommodation | £100,000 | |
| Buildings - Burst pipes | Included | |
| Buildings - Escape of water excess | £450 | |
| Home emergency cover limit | £1,000 | |
| Home emergency - central heating/boiler repair | £1,000 | |
| Buildings - Groundwater flooding | Not covered | 0 out of 5 |
| Subsidence excess | £1,000 | |
| Contents - Valuables unspecified single item limit | £1,500 | |
| Contents - Alternative accommodation | £25,000 | |
| Contents - Accidental damage | Optional extra with some cover included as standard | |
| Contents - Guests' belongings | £2,500 | |
| Contents - Theft of contents in the open | £1,000 | |
| Contents - Damage to contents in the open | £1,000 | |
| Contents - Theft from outbuilding | £5,000 | |
| Contents - Damage to contents in an outbuilding | £7,500 | |
| Contents - Personal possessions cover single item limit | £1,500 |
Table last updated in September 2026. Next update in September 2027. We recommend checking policies before buying.
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Dean Sobers, Which? home insurance expert, says:
1st Central's most comprehensive policy, Premier, scored 69% for buildings cover and 64% for contents cover in our analysis. This was below the average scores of 71% and 67% respectively.
It was satisfactory more often than it fell flat, but it didn't beat the competition in many areas.
We liked that it covers contents that are damaged when the customer is moving house. Unusually, it also covers damage caused by domestic pets.
On the flipside, some of its compulsory excesses were a little on the high side, and its contents cover comes with a single item limit for valuables of £1,500. With most policies this was £2,000 or more.
With all policies that we looked at, there was some guarantee on repairs carried out by the insurer’s approved repairers. Usually, this lasts for one year, but 1st Central provides a two-year guarantee.
1st Central also offers a standard Home policy and basic Essentials cover. Home scored 68% for buildings and 61% for contents – a little lower than its Premier policy's scores.
Essentials was in the bottom fifth of our table, with buildings and contents scores of 66% and 52% respectively.
We asked 1st Central customers who have recently made a claim how they felt about their home insurance.
1st Central received a customer score of 79% – putting it in joint 7th place in our table of 21 providers.
It also scored 81% when we asked people to rate its claims handling, placing it joint 3rd out of 22 brands compared. See the full list of results here.
When we asked more about the rating customers gave 1st Central, one claimant whose home had been burgled told us: 'They fully paid the cost of losses without trying to find loopholes to get out of paying.'
Another customer who made a claim explained: 'They kept me up to date throughout. I felt like they cared. There was no blame game. I thought they were very good to me.'
| How comprehensive the policies are | |
| How affordable the policies are | |
| Clarity of policy | |
| Dealing with queries | |
| Dealing with complaints | |
| Value for money | |
| Fair treatment of long-standing customers | n/a |
Table last updated in September 2026. Next update in September 2027.
'n/a' represents where we have insufficient sample size (less than 40) to generate a star rating.
1st Central sample size: Customer score, 79; Claims score, 87
Compare 1st Central quotes on several price comparison sites to check if it's a good deal. It appears on the following comparison websites:
Want to pay monthly? 1st Central charges interest of 20% APR, so you might be better off paying annually on an interest-free credit card.
Above information correct as of August 2026. For more ways to save money when buying insurance, see our guide.
With a customer score of 79%, 1st Central sits in joint 7th place overall in our satisfaction table, earning the same score as HSBC, Lloyds Bank and Nationwide. It comes just below Allianz, Aviva and Axa (which all scored 80%) and slightly ahead of Admiral and Direct Line (78%).
Its standard Home buildings policy scored 68% – the same as the AA, Coverbaloo, Esure and Sheilas' Wheels – and ranks joint 24th in our standard buildings cover table.
As for contents insurance, its Home policy scored 61% and sits in joint 27th place among standard policies. Co-op Insurance's standard policy also scored 61% for contents cover.
If you need to make a claim, you can call 1st Central on 0333 043 2034.
You can also make a claim online.
Maybe. Its cover wasn’t anything to write home about. But if it fits your needs and budget, 1st Central’s decent customer feedback suggests it could be worth a look.
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