Need home insurance?
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'Is my house detached or not?'
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Bill deals with a range of areas, from staying safe from scams to insurance, benefits, care and equity release. He is passionate about improving people's financial wellbeing.
Our home insurance is with John Lewis, which recently changed underwriters to Axa.
Our house is a link-detached property and Axa only lists semi-detached or detached as options. By choosing detached, the yearly premium increases by over £300.
We’re worried that choosing the wrong option will invalidate the policy if we ever had to make a claim. Which option do we choose?
Stephanie from Hertfordshire
'It's your walls that matter'
Bill Wilkinson-Hoy, Which? money expert, says…
Linked semi-detached properties are two houses commonly joined by garages or other such buildings.
As the two houses don’t share a main building party wall, then, for insurance purposes, your house is detached, unless an insurer offers the link-detached description.
John Lewis has since confirmed to you that detached was correct.
For insurance purposes, your house is detached
Given the significant rise in your premiums, you could use comparison sites to get quotes from other insurers, before going back to John Lewis to negotiate.
Also consider insurers and policies that aren’t on comparison sites, such as NFU Mutual and Best Buy policies from Coverbaloo, Direct Line, Ecclesiastical, NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland and Sagic.
Other members who are struggling to insure more unusual homes – such as those that are heritage-listed or have thatched roofs – could use an insurance broker. Find one through the British Insurance Brokers’ Association (Biba).
- Find out more: Best home insurance companies in the UK
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