In receipts for housing and communal services, you can find a line about voluntary home insurance for 100-200 rubles in addition to the invoice. We understand how state insurance works and whether it is necessary to issue an additional policy in insurance companies separately.
Mari Makeeva, collage by Lami Al Dari Mari Makeeva, collage by Lami Al Dari
In Europe, up to 90% of housing is insured, in Russia – about 16%. One of the reasons for these statistics is the lack of compulsory home insurance in the country. But the state seeks to increase the share of apartments and houses protected by policies and offers special voluntary insurance programs with the participation of the budget.
How does city insurance work in Moscow?
A citywide housing insurance system has been operating in Moscow for 25 years. In the event of an insured event, 10-15% of the damage will be covered by the Moscow government, the remaining 85-90% will be covered by insurance companies connected to this system.
In a single payment document for utility bills, there is an option to protect housing. If you do not have such a line in your receipt, then you can use a separate insurance certificate sent by the City Housing Insurance Center. Muscovites can find such a document in their mailbox.
To insure an apartment for a year, it is enough to pay the insurance premium specified in the offer. This is voluntary – you can refuse, simply without paying for the insurance offer. The item “insurance” stands apart in the receipt, and you don’t have to pay for it. In the online bank, when making payments, you just need to select the item “No insurance premium”. At the same time, you will not be a debtor, unless, of course, you pay the rest of the utilities from the receipt.
Option in the payment receipt – you can choose whether to insure your home or not
There are two options for such insurance:
Basic. The cost is 1.87 ₽ per month or 22.44 ₽ per year for each square meter of housing. The amount of insurance payments is calculated at the rate of 42,000 ₽ per sq. m. of living space, taking into account the damage received.
Enlarged. The cost is 3.14 ₽ per month or 37.68 ₽ per year per 1 sq. m. The payout limit has been increased to 63,000 ₽ per sq. m.
The contribution is calculated individually, taking into account the area of the apartment. On average, Muscovites pay 71 ₽ per month for the protection of their one-bedroom apartment, 99 ₽ for a kopeck piece and 142 ₽ for a three-bedroom apartment.
Only a citizen of the Russian Federation registered at this address can insure his apartment in Moscow in this way. Other tenants, such as tenants, cannot count on insurance damages.
Payments under this insurance are due in case of damage or loss of housing in the event of:
- fire, smoke, exposure to fire extinguishing agents;
- explosion, but not as a result of a terrorist act;
- hurricane, winds over 20 m/s. and associated precipitation;
- utility accidents – breakthroughs of water supply, sewerage, heating.
To receive insurance reimbursement, you need to contact the insurance company serving your area. Her details are indicated on the receipt. If you are flooded by a neighbor, then you need to call the emergency service first and immediately the insurance company. They will help to fix the damage: they will tell you what document to take from public utilities, what and how to photograph before eliminating the consequences of the flood. If you hurry up with repairs, then you can not wait for compensation – the insurer will not be able to assess the actual damage received from the bay and will refuse to pay. Therefore, in the event of an emergency, it is important to immediately contact the insurer and follow his instructions so as not to inadvertently violate the rules.
More than 5000,2018 families in Moscow took advantage of insurance payments in 35, the average amount of compensation was 000,40-000,<> rubles. But in some cases, the compensation was many times greater.
Thus, a family from the Northern Administrative District received insurance reimbursement in the amount of 575,019 rubles. The insured event – a fire in a three-room apartment due to a fire at neighbors – occurred in April. Fire and combustion products in the insured apartment damaged floor and ceiling coverings, wallpaper, central heating batteries and electrical wiring were also damaged.
Compensation under the policy was paid only in the fall, it covered the damage. This is the main disadvantage of such protection – the settlement of losses can be delayed for a long time, because you need to collect documents and assess the damage.
Almost 60% of the capital’s apartments are covered by such insurance, which is the highest figure in the country. In other regions, the authorities have just begun to develop similar programs, and even then not in all.
How does emergency insurance work in the regions?
The law on voluntary home insurance against emergencies (ES) came into force in August 2019. It was launched in 14 pilot regions of the country: in St. Petersburg, Leningrad, Moscow, Novosibirsk, Omsk, Sverdlovsk, Tver, Tyumen, Belgorod regions, as well as in the Trans-Baikal, Krasnodar, Krasnoyarsk, Perm and Khabarovsk territories.
Regional programs began to operate in 2020 and were mainly created on the basis of the capital’s experience – along with utility bills, a line on insurance will be added to the receipt. If the owner pays the amount of the insurance premium, then he agrees with the proposal to protect the housing, and his apartment or house will be insured.
Now, in case of emergency, the state helps all victims. For example, in November 2019, when several districts in the Novgorod region were flooded, 700 affected families were paid 10,000 rubles from the regional budget at a time. To cover damage to property, they will still be given up to 100,000 rubles from the reserve fund of the region.
Of course, this amount will not be able to replace all soaked furniture, household appliances, damaged things, floated firewood and supplies and make repairs in the house. In some settlements, the water stood at the level of the windows of residential buildings for 1-2 weeks, and it is impossible to cover the losses from this natural disaster with such meager compensation from the budget. Compensation for damage in the presence of a policy from an insurance company can be in 3-5 times more. But not everyone has such a policy.
Therefore, it is proposed to introduce almost compulsory home insurance, so that, in addition to the authorities, insurance companies also cover damage from emergencies. If the victims do not have insurance, then they will be able to count only on the most minimal compensation from the authorities – 10,000-30,000 rubles each. And if you have insurance, they will be able to receive up to 100,000-500,000 rubles.
The government plans to distribute the financial burden in case of emergencies between insurance companies and the regional budget. As a result, residents whose homes will suffer due to the rampant elements will be able to get more than they should now. They will add quite “urban risks” to the insurance: a gas explosion, a bay by neighbors, a fire. But it all depends on the specific region – the terms of insurance are set by local authorities.
In addition to this regional home insurance, there are other opportunities to protect your square meters. Voluntary home insurance programs include advanced options, increased payment limits, and help in different situations.
Do I need to buy both policies or is regional insurance enough?
Now there are a lot of property insurance products on the market. One of the differences between them is the amount of coverage, namely the list of risks included in the policy.
As a rule, insurance companies offer to insure real estate against the following risks: fire, explosion, bay, natural disasters, PDTL (illegal actions of third parties), falling objects, etc.
As for regional programs implemented in accordance with the law, the list of risks in them may differ depending on:
- exposure of the territory to risks, composition and ratio of objects in the region (houses, apartments, their condition, etc.),
- the region’s ability to additionally finance compensation for non-emergency risks.
Until recently, there were a number of assumptions about the cost of emergency insurance – from 300 to 1000 or more ₽ per year. However, so far there are no all the necessary factors to name any specific figure, as well as to judge the sufficiency of coverage. Much, as indicated above, will depend on the conditions of regional programs.
Do I need additional insurance?
Regional home insurance programs do not cover all risks – none of them contain compensation for damage to third parties. If you flood your neighbors, then you will have to pay for repairs yourself, because an insurance policy with state support will not cover these losses.
There is no protection of property rights in these programs – if you buy an apartment “with a surprise”, for example, in the form of unexpectedly appeared heirs, then such a policy will not help – there are other insurance programs for this.
In addition, regional home insurance is not able to protect expensive repairs, the “stuffing” of the apartment and personal belongings of residents. It covers only damage caused to the decoration of walls, ceiling, floor, as well as windows, doors and communications, and only within the limits of the standards. If furniture or appliances suffer, then this policy will not help.
To protect your home from all problems and without restrictions on payment, you need to buy another insurance, and not pay for the one that is offered by default.
When purchasing an insurance policy, it is important to choose the sum insured, which will be enough to compensate for the lost property.
The main mistake is too small an insurance amount for insurance. In case of fires, as a rule, the housing is completely destroyed, so a small insurance amount may not cover the client’s damage in full.
If the apartment or house is located near the airport, it is important that the list of risks includes the risk of “falling aircraft or their parts”, if near the river, then the risk of “natural disasters” or from emergencies, etc. It is also necessary to provide for third-party liability insurance. This is especially true if the neighbors below have recently made repairs. In the event of their flooding as a result of a breakdown of engineering equipment or a malfunction of the washing machine, the insurance company compensates for the damage.
Here are the home insurance programs offered by insurance companies.
Property home insurance. Such insurance works when the property itself is damaged, and sometimes the household property inside.
The policy applies to:
- construction – walls, floor, ceiling, window and door openings, that is, the box of the apartment itself, and payments are due, for example, if a wall collapses or a window frame is knocked out;
- engineering equipment and communications – if pipes, wires, ventilation ducts are damaged, then insurance is issued for their restoration or replacement;
- interior decoration – even repairs are subject to insurance: in the policy, you can specify the total amount in which you evaluate the flooring, stretch ceiling, wallpaper and room decoration details;
- furniture, interior items, household appliances and electronics – it is possible to include even a home environment in the insurance, with an individual approach, the insurer will describe each chair, and the classic policy will simply indicate the total value of all this property;
- personal belongings of residents – this item is also often in the home insurance policy, it includes clothes and shoes, children’s toys, books, sports equipment, hobby materials, but antiques and jewelry are offered to be insured separately – according to the inventory.
Of course, each insurance program has its own conditions: with the inclusion of a particular type of property in the policy, on the limits on compensation for damage, on the methods of assessing damage. For example, you will insure the construction of an apartment for 500,000 rubles, refusing to protect the decoration and furniture. A neighbor will flood you. Moreover, the walls, floor, ceiling will suffer slightly – the appraiser from the insurance company will say that it is enough to dry them and no damage. But the furniture will become unusable, but there will be no insurance payments – this property is not included in the policy. Therefore, carefully study the terms of insurance before buying a policy.
Sample insurance policy
You can insure your apartment against the following risks:
- Damage from fire, smoke, combustion products and fire extinguishing – the policy will cover damage not only from fire. If the rooms are flooded with foam or water when extinguishing, or things smell of smoke and soot, it will also be possible to receive compensation;
- damage by water and other liquids – payments are due in case of breakthroughs in communications, including sewerage, or negligence of neighbors from above, due to which the insured property was damaged;
- illegal actions of third parties – insurance will cover losses from vandals who set fire to the front door, hooligans who broke a window, apartment thieves or robbers, as well as arsonists or other ill-wishers who decided to spoil your property;
- total loss as a result of any emergency – payments will cover the purchase of new housing, but only if the insurance company recognizes that it is impossible to restore the damaged housing. If she considers that the apartment will still be suitable for life, then she will give out only a part of the full amount of compensation – for repairs.
Choose a property insurance policy with the right options.
The cost of insurance depends on the amount of coverage for each of the risks. For example, if you insure for 1-1.5 million each of the parameters: interior decoration, construction and household goods under the “Apartment-Express” program in Renaissance Insurance, then it will cost 8400 rubles per year. If you exclude the clause “movable property” from the policy and protect only the structural elements of the apartment and interior decoration, then the price of this policy will drop to 3900 rubles.
Most often, people are disappointed in insurance, as they do not carefully read the terms and conditions of insurance. Some adjust emergencies (PE) on their own in order to get money from insurance or repair already dilapidated housing. But in the event of an insured event, a representative of the insurance company conducts an investigation and clarifies all the circumstances of the incident in order to accurately assess the damage and the amount of compensation. It will not be possible to hold the insurer.
The subtleties that should be paid attention to when concluding an insurance contract for the property of individuals usually relate to exclusions from insurance coverage and a description of what exactly is recognized as an insured event. The insured risks of all companies are usually more or less similar. For country houses, the basic risks are usually a fire, a lightning strike, an explosion, illegal actions of third parties, natural disasters, liquid flooding, mechanical effects (for example, trees falling on an insured country house or damage to a fence by an crashed car).With apartments, the situation is simpler. Almost all common risks are covered by insurance.
Exclusions from insurance coverage are usually explicitly listed in the contract. The most relevant are flooding due to leaks in the roof and from interpanel seams, as well as due to unclosed windows, and theft of household goods without traces of burglary (for example, with the help of keys stolen by a pickpocket).
To quickly receive compensation, it is important to pay attention to the correctness of the paperwork. Most often, errors and difficulties arise with the act of the bay, this document does not have a standard form, and management companies may, for example, forget to indicate the address of the apartment of the culprit of the leak or the date of the bay. In order not to have to re-draw up the act, it is better to consult with the insurance company about filling out the necessary documents.
Some policies have a deductible. This is a certain amount – part of the damage that the client himself must cover. So the insurer can cut off small cases with small amounts of compensation, so as not to bother with payments of several thousand rubles. In such cases, you can count on help from the insurance company only in case of serious emergencies and large damage, and not with every battery leak. Such a policy is cheaper.
When insuring a residential building in the Moscow region for 1,000,000 rubles under the program from RESO-Garantia without a deductible, you will have to pay 6000 rubles, but if you choose a deductible of 10,000 rubles, then the policy will be 15% cheaper. If you cover all minor losses at your own expense, then the insurance will cost 5100 ₽. Whether you need such savings, decide for yourself.
There are other types of insurance that protect not only the apartment and its contents.
Title insurance.Protects the “title” – the ownership of real estate, the ownership of it.
It will help if you buy an apartment on the secondary market “with a surprise” in the form of unaccounted heirs or the seller’s incapacity. The transaction can be challenged through the courts. If there are grounds to invalidate it, then you will have to return the property to its rightful owners, and then sue the seller for your money.
A title insurance policy will not protect against fraudulent schemes and confusing dramas in the family of a home seller, it will not save you from going to court and losing an apartment purchased with violations. But it will allow you to reimburse legal costs, pay the debt to the bank (if you have a mortgage) and return the money spent on the purchase. The insurer will pay the indemnity and will knock the money out of the failed home seller himself.
There are no separate title insurance policies, this option is usually included in a comprehensive real estate insurance program. For example, in AlfaStrakhovanie, when choosing the “title insurance” option, the tariff will be 0.3% of the sum insured, but you can pay it immediately for up to 10 years in order to reduce the cost of the policy.
The minimum recommended period for title insurance is 3 years. This is the statute of limitations in civil cases. The deadline for challenging transactions, for example, by inheritance, is 10 years. For your own peace of mind, it is better to buy a title insurance policy all this time. This applies only to housing in the secondary market.
You do not need to insure new buildings to protect property rights – you directly receive an apartment from the developer, and no one will challenge this transaction.
You may not insure your home under this program if the lawyer has checked the purity of the transaction, the history of the apartment and its owners in recent years. Or you are sure that there will be no problems, for example, you have personally known the seller and his family for a long time.
Mortgage insurance. According to the mortgage law, the borrower is obliged to insure the purchased housing in favor of the bank against the risk of loss and damage. If the property suffers and loses value, the bank will decide where to send insurance payments – for repairs or for the payment of mortgage payments. In case of complete loss of insured housing, for example, in a fire, insurance will cover the debt to the bank in full, And the borrower will receive the rest of the funds in his hands. This is a mandatory part of the mortgage agreement.
There are also optional insurance programs that the mortgage holder has the right to choose or refuse them. This is voluntary, but some banks may aggressively impose these policies. It’s up to you to decide whether you need extra protection or not.
With a mortgage, you have the right to conclude insurance contracts against various risks:
- non-payment of debt – if the borrower cannot pay on schedule and he does not have enough funds even after the sale of the mortgage apartment, the insurance will cover the bank’s losses;
- the borrower’s death – the policy will work, if there is no one to repay the mortgage, the bank will still receive its money, and the heirs will not have to pay their debts;
- disability – the insurance will cover monthly payments for the duration of illness or pay off the balance of the debt to the bank if the borrower gets a disability and can no longer work;
- loss of ownership (title) – upon termination of the transaction through the court, payments under the policy will help to pay off the bank and re-start the process of finding housing;
- Job loss – such a policy is valid for a couple of months upon dismissal, until the borrower gets a new job, payments on it will be used to pay off mandatory mortgage payments.
Mortgage insurance can be comprehensive, including all these risks, or the bank will offer you to choose the appropriate options yourself. Remember that you can refuse any type of insurance, except for the protection of the mortgage housing itself.
The mortgage insurance policy is issued only for the amount of the loan balance and only for the “constructive” (for an apartment, these are walls and ceilings). That is, if the owner of the property would like to issue a policy on the size of the real value of the property, so that if, for example, a country house burns down, the amount paid to him is enough to reimburse the bank for the balance of the loan, and to compensate for the loss from the fire, he must insure the property to the real market value.
The same applies to insurance of finishing (“repair”) and liability to neighbors (an analogue of OSAGO for real estate insurance – if, for example, a bay occurred due to the fault of the owner of the apartment, the insurance company will take over the payment of compensation). These two risks are not included in the standard “mortgage” contract, they need to be insured independently.
On average, a little more than half of the premium under the comprehensive mortgage insurance program falls on accident insurance, 20% – the price of “constructive” insurance, 25% – title insurance.
In the case of the “primary” can only be issued an accident insurance contract, and only after obtaining ownership of the apartment – a property insurance contract.
Personal insurance is not mandatory. The borrower has two options to choose from – either take a policy and get loan terms with a reduced interest rate, or not buy a policy, but apply for a mortgage at an increased interest rate (usually the rate rises by 1%).
The cost of property insurance with a mortgage will cost 1-2% of the value of the property, but if you add the option of life and health insurance, you will have to pay another 3-5% of the balance of the debt. So, when insuring a mortgage apartment with a debt balance of 1,500,000 rubles at VTB Insurance, you will have to pay 1800 rubles, and the borrower’s life insurance policy there will cost 6615 rubles.
Ask how much mortgage insurance will cost you
Insurance of civil liability to neighbors. Such a policy protects against the cost of covering damage if apartments or non-residential premises in the neighborhood are damaged due to an emergency at your home. This insurance is valid if your wiring catches fire, pipes burst or repairs are actively underway, from which others suffer. The policy can reimburse:
- damage to the life and health of neighbors;
- damage to property;
- losses due to damage to property;
- legal costs in disputes with victims.
Different insurance companies have different payout limits and risk limits.
Sometimes insurance does not cover damage to neighbors if the washing machine breaks or forgetfulness if you do not turn off the faucet. The policy may not work if you change the flooring, which is why the chandelier collapsed from the neighbors below, and the repairs are not done by you and not by the company under the contract, but by repairmen hired informally.
Thus, the Happy Home program from Alliance does not include the risks of arson and accidents of utility systems, but it will cover the damage from a terrorist act. And this is rare – usually insurers refer to this risk as an exception and do not protect against it.
The amount of the sum insured varies even within the same program. As a rule, you can choose a “boxed” product from several options. This is a ready-made policy that takes effect after payment and does not require a visit to the site for inspection and evaluation of housing. The VSK property insurance program allows you to insure an apartment or house in the amount of 350,000 to 1,000,000 rubles, and the payment limits for each of the risks will vary.
VSK policy can be bought at the post office
There are insurances that are valid only if the owner himself and his family live in the apartment, and protection does not apply to tenants who rent an apartment. Other programs, on the contrary, are suitable for landlords – the owners will not have to answer for the mistakes of the tenants, the damage will be covered by insurance. When choosing a policy, pay attention to the additional condition – “rented” in order to choose the appropriate option.
When insurance is needed
1. If you go on vacation and leave the apartment empty, it is better to insure it against a variety of emergencies, including burglary, flooding by neighbors and flooding of neighbors. But the keys still need to be entrusted to one of the relatives so that they periodically check if everything is in order, and can correct the consequences in time and contact the insurance company.
2. If you live in a good area and there is an expensive boutique or a rich neighbor’s apartment under you, third-party liability insurance will come in handy. In the event of flooding or other damage to your neighbors, you will not go bankrupt, but you will be able to cover the damage with payments under the policy.
3. If you live in a bad area, then insurance will help protect your own property. The main attention is paid to the option of insurance against illegal actions to compensate for possible losses from a window broken by hooligans or damage due to thieves who entered the apartment.
4. If you live in a private house, then you need to insure your property against natural disasters – floods, hurricanes, lightning strikes, forest fires. And if you often leave home, then also from the criminal actions of third parties, including vandalism, arson, theft. In some programs, you can include in the policy not only a residential building, but also other buildings on the site.
5. If you rent or rent a house. In order not to quarrel with neighbors because of possible damage, it is worth buying a third-party liability insurance policy.
Why is it comfortable to live in modern new buildings?
It seems that for a comfortable life in an apartment, the main thing is its size. But in fact, it is not the meters that are important, but the layout. We figured out what a well-thought-out layout is and why it is more comfortable to live in an apartment in a new building than in apartments of the old housing stock.
New buildings do not have a typical layout
Apartments are different…
What’s behind the doors of the new building
How to choose the layout of the apartment
New buildings do not have a typical layout
Can a family of 4 with a dog live comfortably in a two-room apartment? PIK conducted such a survey, and it turned out that 31% of respondents strongly doubt this, and 23% believe that this is impossible. In fact, it is possible. It’s all about the layout.
Apartments are different…
Layout —
This is the location of residential and non-residential premises in the apartment, the ratio of their area, geometry and size.
Previously, urban planners did not work separately on the layout of apartments in a particular house, but developed a single template of layouts for a series of buildings at once. This template was used in the construction of houses in different cities of the Soviet Union, so Khrushchev in Moscow is practically no different from Khrushchev in Samara.
Template layouts cannot meet the needs of the modern family: they were developed as a temporary solution for the resettlement of as many people as possible. Therefore, today the layouts in Khrushchev are perceived as non-functional.
For example
Often there is a long narrow corridor – nothing can be placed in such a corridor, and useful meters are simply not used.
It is often impossible or very expensive to redraw the layout in the old housing stock, so it makes sense to pay attention to new buildings: the layouts in new apartments are designed so that all family members can live comfortably. For example, PIK offers such layouts in its projects.
Studio apartments
This layout is also called open. Only the bathroom is isolated, everything else is one large space, which is zoned for a kitchen, bedroom, study – at will.
Smart apartments and studio apartments are suitable for one or two people, it will be inconvenient for a large family to live in the same room.
Apartments with separate rooms
The most successful layout is that all rooms are separated from each other and open into a corridor or hall. The perfect solution for a family of any size
Open-plan apartments
In such apartments there are no internal walls, so you can come up with your own ideal layout. The walls are included in the project, but the project can be changed in the BTI. Therefore, when changing the layout, new tenants save on the demolition of walls and repair time.
What’s behind the doors of the new building
In the modern layout of apartments, you can find the following options:
Master Bedroom
This is a “house” for parents – a bedroom with a separate bathroom and dressing room.
A separate dressing room and bathroom are an incredibly convenient and practical solution. No need to clutter up the bedroom with wardrobes and look for a place to store seasonal items. And you can take a shower and get ready for work without fear of waking up the rest of the household.
In the master bedroom, you can also equip a workplace so that no one interferes with work.
The second bathroom can save a lot of nerves for families with children: children and parents can get ready for school, kindergarten and work at the same time. The second bathroom can also be used as a guest bathroom – if guests often come to you.
For example, in many PIK layouts, a second bathroom is provided. At the same time, it is located in the apartment as conveniently as possible – in the hallway.
Nursery
A spacious room that will fit what the child needs: a bed, a wardrobe, a computer desk, a bedside table for toys. If there are two children, you can install a bunk bed and equip a sports corner – there is enough space.