HSBC home insurance review

With over 39 million customers worldwide, HSBC is one of the world's largest banking and financial services organisations. 

In the UK HSBC that offers a wide range of financial products including home insurance, personal loans, mortgages and credit cards.

HSBC is part of the HSBC Group which also owns First Direct and M&S Bank. It's a public company traded on the London Stock Exchange. 

• Find out more: what is contents insurance?

What does HSBC's home insurance cover?

The information below gives an at-glance view of the key things that HSBC's home insurance covers as standard.

Elements marked with a ✓ are covered as standard and those marked with a ✘ are not covered as standard. However, these can be added to a policy as optional extras for an additional cost.

• Find out more: what is buildings insurance?

How Which? Rates HSBC's home insurance

To help you find the best home insurance policy, Which? goes the extra mile to sort the best from the worst.

We survey thousands of real home insurance customers to find out how they rate their insurer for customer satisfaction.

We also analyse and rate 60 different elements of contents and buildings insurance to create policy scores, helping you judge the quality of your cover - and how an insurer compares to its peers.

We combine this into an overall score to highlight the insurers that offer great cover and service.

Which? members can log in to see the results of our analysis. If you’re not already a member, you can sign up to a one month trial for Which? Money for just £1 to access this review and enjoy the benefits of a Which? membership.

Home And Mobile Insurance

HSBC review

Overall Which? score

%

Our total score score combines both the Which? Customer Score, ratings from real customers of the provider, and our expert analysis of the provider's policies. The total score is made up of 50% of the Customer Score and 25% each of Buildings and Contents policy scores.

Which? Customer Score

%

Which?'s rating for customer satisfaction, based on feedback from real customers. The score is made up of a customer's overall satisfaction with the brand, and how likely they are to recommend that brand.

Buildings policy score

%

Which?'s rating of the quality this company's buildings insurance policy. We analysed 32 features of its cover to calculate the policy score.

Contents policy score

%

Which?'s rating of the quality this company's contents insurance policy. We analysed 46 features of its cover to calculate the policy score.

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HSBC’s home insurance policy: is it good or bad?

In February 2019, we analysed and rated 60 of the most important elements of standard home insurance policies to come up with the overall policy score.

We assess how important each individual element is when choosing and using a home insurance policy, and weight it accordingly when calculating our total policy score. Each element is given a star rating, out of five.

Overall, a whopping 54 out of the 60 elements policy elements we analysed in HSBC's home insurance earned a 3-star rating or higher.

HSBC scored full 5-star rating for 26 of the features we looked at and 24 elements were given a 3-star rating which indicates an above-average level of cover. 

Best parts of HSBC's home insurance policy

We’ve identified three standout features in HSBC’s home insurance policy:

• Up to £20,000 of cover for a single item not specified on your policy, which earned 5 out of 5 stars
• 0% APR on monthly payments, which we gave 5 stars
• No cancellation fee even if you change your mind after the 14 day cooling off period, which scored 5 stars

Worst parts of HSBC's home insurance policy

We've identified three features in HSBC's home insurance policy which scored poorly:

• No claims discount protection not offered, which scored 0 stars out of 5
• Gradual build up of groundwater not covered, which didn't get any stars 
• Up to £1,500 for personal possessions kept in the car, which we gave 2 stars

In detail: every part of HSBC's home insurance policy rated 

Which? members can log in to see the results of our analysis. If you’re not already a member, you can sign up to a one month trial for Which? Money for just £1 to access this review and enjoy the benefits of a Which? membership.

Table last updated in February 2019. Next updated in February 2020.

Most important policy elementsSecondary policy elementsOther policy elements

Policy elements	Details	Rating	Area covered
Interest charged on payment by installments (APR)			Buildings and contents
Renewal fee (£)			Buildings and contents
Home emergency cover - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings and contents
Home emergency cover (£)			Buildings and contents
Owner's / Occupier's liability (£)			Buildings and contents
Accidental damage cover - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings and contents
Subsidence - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings only
Alternative accommodation (£)			Buildings only
Burst pipes - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings only
Blockage of sewer pipe - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings only
Single item limit for valuables - max limit (£)			Contents only
Contents in the open - within home boundary i.e. garden (£)			Contents only
Contents in outbuildings - including garages (£)			Contents only
Theft from outbuildings (£)			Contents only
Personal Possessions - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Personal Possessions limit within a car (£)			Contents only
Bicycles - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Mobile phones (away from home) - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Does mobile phone cover include calls?			Contents only

Policy element	Details	Rating	Area covered
Insurer pays switching fees? (£)			Buildings and contents
Adjustment fee (£)			Buildings and contents
Cancellation fee - after 14 days (£)			Buildings and contents
Duplicate document fee (£)			Buildings and contents
Standard level of excess (£)			Buildings and contents
Subsidence excess (£)			Buildings only
24 hour emergency helpline - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings and contents
Are repairs guaranteed under home emergency cover? (Yes/No)			Buildings and contents
Gradual build up of ground water covered?			Buildings and contents
Garden cover - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Storm damage to fences - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings only
Trace and access limit (£)			Buildings only
Bicycle away from home (£)			Contents only
TV or AV equipment accidental damage - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Is money covered away from home - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Money in the home (£)			Contents only
Money away from the home (£)			Contents only
Digital information in the home (£)			Contents only
Students contents in digs covered - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Home removal insurance - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Cover level for loss of keys (£)			Buildings only
Cover level for loss of keys (£)			Contents only
Cover level for theft of keys (£)			Buildings only
Cover level for theft of keys (£)			Contents only
Is boiler cover included - home emergency cover?			Buildings and contents
Boiler cover - parts and repairs included?			Buildings and contents
Boiler cover - call-outs included?			Buildings and contents

Policy element	Details	Rating	Area covered
Payment Default fee (£)			Buildings and contents
Unoccupancy period			Buildings and contents
Legal expenses - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings and contents
Legal expenses cover (£)			Buildings and contents
Garden contents cover (£)			Contents only
No claims discount (NCD) protection?			Buildings and contents
Students cover limit (£)			Contents only
Minimum level of excess (£)			Buildings and contents
Discount for buying buildings and contents insurance?			Buildings and contents
Business / Office equipment covered - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Loss of keys - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings only
Loss of keys - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only
Theft of keys - standard, optional, not covered?			Buildings only
Theft of keys - standard, optional, not covered?			Contents only

To see how Halifax's home insurance compares to other policies check out our guide on the best and worst home insurance.

How did customers rate HSBC's home insurance?

As well as looking at how HSBC's home insurance policy stacks up against others, we've also analysed how customers feel about it too.

Which?'s rating for customer satisfaction is based on feedback from real customers. The score is made up of a customer's overall satisfaction with the brand, and how likely they are to recommend that brand.

Overall, HSBC home insurance scored 65% for customer satisfaction, placing it 32nd out of the 34 home insurers we looked at.

Customers scored HSBC's 'clarity of policy' among the highest-rated elements, only giving it three stars. HSBC's 'transparency of charges and penalties' was scored the lowest by customers and only received two stars.

The table below shows how HSBC home insurance scored for eight elements of customer satisfaction.

Customer satisfaction element	Which? Customer rating
Application process
Clarity of policy
Dealing with queries
Ease of managing your policy online
Transparency of charges/penalties
Dealing with complaints
Experience of making a claim
Value for money

Does HSBC offer different levels of cover?

The scores shown in this review relate to HSBC's standard home insurance. It is possible to increase your level of cover by adding optional extras such as home emergency cover, to your policy.  

Choosing to add these features on to your policy will come at an added cost, making your policy more expensive than a standard one.

How much does HSBC's home insurance cost?

Your contents insurance and buildings insurance will be priced based on your own personal circumstances, where you live and the type of property and contents you own.

HSBC doesn't appear on any price comparison sites but allows you to gather quotes on its own website at www.hsbc.co.uk/insurance/products/home/.

Check out our guide for more information on how add-ons, fees and charges affect the price of your home insurance.

What is HSBC's claims number?

If you need to make a claim with HSBC home insurance call 0345 300 5899.

Before calling to make a claim with HSBC, make sure that you have your home insurance policy number, receipts quotes or invoices, an estimate of the size of the affected area and photos of the damaged or lost/stolen property to hand. 

The acid test of any home insurance provider is how it handles your claim. In January 2019, Which? surveyed 1,456 members of the general public about their experiences using a major home insurance provider.

Due to limited sample size, we weren't able to score HSBC on their claim's process but you can find out how other home insurers were rated in our guide on making a home insurance claim.

Who underwrites HSBC's home insurance?

HSBC home insurance is underwritten by Aviva Insurance Limited. 

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