Home Emergency

This is the maximum amount we will pay towards each Home Emergency claim made.

What isn't covered

• We cannot cover any Home Emergency claims made in the first seven days after your policy's start date, unless you had the equivalent insurance immediately before.
• If you experience a home emergency, you must let us know within 48 hours of discovering it.

This is the number of emergency callouts you can make during your twelve-month policy.

What's covered

You are covered if your boiler suffers complete failure or breakdown, resulting in no hot water and/or heating. This includes a water leak from your boiler, or if your boiler doesn't produce any hot water or heating, or doesn't switch on.

With home emergency cover, a contractor will come to your home and attempt to complete a temporary repair of your boiler if possible.

What isn't covered

• Non-domestic heating systems or boilers with an output of over 60kW/hr.
• Boilers over 15 years old.
• Lighting boilers, operating them correctly, or adjusting the time or temperature controls, or replacement controls where the boiler can be safely operated manually.
• Adjusting the water pressure that is not caused by a fault in your boiler.
• Descaling and any work (including power flushing) that is needed as a result of hard-water deposits or damage caused by hard water or sludge from corrosion.
• Bleeding or clearing the airlocks from any radiators.
• Repairing heated towel rails.
• Repairing any appliance that is not designed for heating (for example, a cooker).
• Any boiler or system that is not serviced by an authorised tradesperson every 15 months or more often if the manufacturer recommends this (we will need proof of the service before we carry out any work).
• Repairing any boiler that we assess to be uneconomical.
• Any loss or damage caused as a result of lack of fuel.

What's covered

You are covered if you experience blocked or leaking pipes or joints in your home which is causing an emergency.

You are also covered for a blocked or leaking water storage tank if it's causing an emergency in your home.

Our contractor will visit your home and attempt to complete a temporary repair, if possible, such as repairing a leaking pipe or joint, clearing a blocked sink or isolating a leaking hot water cylinder, water storage tank or radiator.

If our contractor cannot repair a leak, for example from a radiator, they may be able to isolate it so you can turn your heating back on.

What isn't covered

• Repairs to any outside pipes and taps.
• Repairs to overflows which are not causing water damage inside your home.
• Cleaning or descaling and any work arising from deposits of hard-water scale.
• Any dripping or leaking taps, nozzles or any other parts of the plumbing system where water is safely escaping down a drain.
• Replacement of radiators (but our contractor may be able to isolate the radiator to prevent the leak).
• Failure of waste-disposal units.
• Frozen pipes which have not caused any permanent damage.
• Water leaking from swimming pools or hot tubs.
• Repairs to domestic appliances that are leaking water, including burst or leaking flexible hoses.
• Any pipework leading to a Saniflo or similar system.
• 'Trace and Access' – Home Emergency doesn't cover invasive exploratory work, like digging up or removing your floor or panelling to find the source of an emergency. But, trace and access may be included in your main home insurance policy.
• Your garage and outbuildings aren't covered with home emergency cover, so blocked or leaking pipes in these buildings won't be covered. However, they may be included in your main home insurance policy.

What's covered

You are covered if an issue with your toilet creates an emergency. For example, if the only toilet you can access in your home has damage to the flushing mechanism or a blockage, or if any toilet in your home is overflowing, creating a risk to health.

Our contractors will come and help contain the emergency by making repairs to a blocked or leaking toilet, or to a toilet which isn't flushing.

What isn't covered

• If you have another toilet in your home that you are able to use, and the issue is not causing a risk to health, it isn't an emergency and so isn't included under our home emergency cover.
• Blocked toilets if the blockage has been caused by deliberate misuse, such as flushing baby wipes down the toilet.
• Saniflo toilets or similar systems.
• The cost of replacement ceramics.

What's covered

We can help if you have an emergency caused by blocked waste pipes and/or external drains on your property which can be cleared by rodding or jetting.

Where possible, our contractors will be able to help you through rodding (where a cable is inserted into the pipe) or jetting (where the water is flushed through the pipe).

What isn't covered

• Public sewers, drains and pipes which are maintained by local utility companies or under a service agreement.
• Soakaways, guttering and downpipes.
• Damage to drains caused by structures which don't meet local building regulations.
• Frozen pipes that haven't caused a permanent blockage.
• The cleaning or descaling of your drains or any work arising from deposits of hard-water scale.
• Clearing drains if the issue was caused by misuse, such as flushing baby wipes down the toilet or putting grease or cooking oil down the drain.
• Any pipework leading to a Saniflo or similar system.
• Any drains which allow water to escape safely, however slowly.

What's covered

Home Emergency will cover damage to external doors or windows which stops you from securing your home. For example, broken or cracked external windows, damage to an external door or lock damage or failure on external doors or windows.

The temporary repairs we will do to contain the emergency may include boarding up a broken window or door or providing a temporary lock and single set of keys if there isn't any other way to make your home secure.

What isn't covered

• The security cover doesn't include locks on windows which can't be accessed, like windows on the 2nd floor or above.
• Any damage caused deliberately by you or your family.
• Double glazing where one pane has been broken, but the other is intact.
• Fences, gates, outbuildings and detached garages.
• Garage doors (we will secure the door between your garage and the main building).
• Lost keys where your home is secure.

What's included

We'll help you with an infestation in your home which stops you from using one or more rooms in your home. We can help with wasps, hornets, mice, rats and cockroaches.

Our contractor will determine the best way to remove your pest infestation, which may include poison or bait.

If you have a pest infestation in your home that we don't cover, please check to see if your local council provides more information to help control that specific pest: https://www.gov.uk/report-pest-problem

Please note, we will only pay for two incidents in any period of insurance.

What isn't covered

• Pests in outbuildings and detached garages.
• Repeat claims where you have failed to follow previous guidance from us or the contractor designed to prevent continued or further infestation.
• Removal of the nest itself if not required to remove the pest.
• Damage caused by the pests.
• Permanent proofing works to the property to prevent further infestation.
• Pest infestation by any pests not listed above.
• Bees: Please note that bees aren't usually seen as pests – if you have a swarm of bees, visit the British Beekeepers Association's website: https://www.bbka.org.uk/.
• Bats: If you have bats, please note that they are a protected species in the UK. You will need to contact the Bat Conservation Trust (more information can be found at https://www.bats.org.uk/, or call the National Bat Helpline: 0345 1300 228).

What's covered

We cover storm damage to the roof of your home if it is causing damage to (or is likely to cause damage to) the inside of your home as a result of water coming into your home.

Our contractors will come to try and contain the emergency - remember that Home Emergency cover is only there to provide temporary repairs. Steps taken may include preventing water from getting into your home (by using tarpaulin, for example) or preventing any water that enters your home from causing damage (by arranging for it to be collected or diverted, for example).

What isn't covered

• Your Home Emergency cover doesn't cover water leaks caused by poor roof maintenance, blocked guttering or wear and tear.
• We don't cover water leaks through flat, felt and glass roofs.
• Damage to property or contents as a result of water entering your home is not included as part of your Home Emergency cover.
• While permanent repairs or replacements aren't included in your Home Emergency cover, it may be provided within your Building and Contents insurance in your main home insurance policy.

Please note, that when we say storm, we mean a period of violent weather defined by

• A gale of Force 10 or above (as defined under the internationally recognised Beaufort Scale) reaching wind speeds of at least 55 mph; or
• Torrential rain that falls at a rate of at least 25mm per hour; or
• Snow that falls to a depth of at least 30cm in 24 hours; or
• Hail so severe that it causes damage to hard surfaces or breaks glass.

Please understand that in the event of storms, our contractor will only be able to attend once the storm has passed and it is safe to carry out works.

What's covered

Home Emergency Plus covers you for an emergency relating to a failure of your electricity supply from the electric meter in your home to fuse boxes, sockets, switches and light fittings. For example, failed wiring to immersion heaters and boilers, failed wiring to sockets, switches and light fittings, the breakdown of a fuse box or the loss of power to a circuit.

When covered, we'll pay for emergency work to be carried out to contain the emergency. For example, by isolating the faulty electrics to make the area safe.

What isn't covered

• The interruption or disconnection of public services to your home for whatever reason.
• Wiring that's outside your home. This includes outside lighting and electricity supplies to outbuildings or garages.
• Replacing light bulbs or fuses in plugs and any other routine tasks to maintain items which use electricity.
• Failure of the electricity supply to burglar or fire alarms, CCTV systems or garage doors.
• Breakdown, loss, damage or repairs to domestic appliances, like washing machines, kettles, televisions.
• Wiring or electrics in shared areas.
• The plumbing and filtration system for swimming pools.
• Solar-powered electricity systems.

What's covered

We will cover damaged gas supply pipes in your home, once the gas supply has been isolated by the National Gas Emergency Service. We will repair or replace a damaged gas supply pipe or cooker hose.

We aren't able to restore your gas supply or replace the gas supply pipe before the meter. Please contact your gas supplier who can arrange this for you.

What isn't covered

• The gas supply pipe before the meter.
• The interruption or disconnection of public services to your home for whatever reason.
• The breakdown, loss, damage or repairs to domestic appliances.
• Any pipe that you are not responsible for.

Home Emergency cover doesn't include Trace and Access. Trace and Access is when invasive work is required to find and access the cause of your emergency. This could include digging up the floor or removing panelling, flooring or tiles.

You might still have Trace and Access cover with your buildings insurance in your main home insurance policy.

What's covered

If we have accepted a Boiler claim and we can't get your heating working six hours after you reported your claim to us, or after our contractor has left your home, we'll contribute up to £100 (including VAT) towards the cost of buying or hiring alternative heating sources if we consider it necessary based on the temperatures in your home.

Please note that you must provide an original receipt for the alternative heating for us to process this claim. This cover only allows for a temporary heat source within your home and not the payment towards the utility bill of another home, should you opt to stay elsewhere.

What isn't covered

• We will only pay for one incident of alternative heating in any period of insurance.

What's covered

If we agree that, because of an emergency, your home is uninhabitable, we'll pay up to £1,000 (including VAT) in any one period of insurance for overnight accommodation (on a room only basis) for you, your family and any dogs and cats that normally live with you.

We'll also cover reasonable travel expenses to and from that accommodation. You must provide original receipts showing these costs.

What isn't covered

• The cost of overnight accommodation for anyone who is not a member of your family and does not permanently live with you in your home.
• More than two nights of hotel accommodation.

What's covered

If we have accepted a Boiler claim and we and the contractor believe it's uneconomical to repair your boiler, we'll contribute towards the cost of a brand new, replacement boiler.

The amount we will pay depends on the age of the boiler you have made a claim on. The most we will pay in any one period of insurance, including VAT, is:

• £500 for a boiler aged up to 4 years;
• £300 for a boiler aged 5-7 years old;
• £200 for a boiler aged 8-10 years old; or
• £150 for a boiler aged 11-15 years old.

We must approve this before you make a claim. You can claim our contribution by sending us a copy of your receipt for the new boiler within 90 days of the original emergency.

What isn't covered

• Claims for boilers which are over 15 years old.
• Any claim for boiler replacement contribution that is more than 90 days after the original emergency.