Hastings Direct Home Insurance Review and Quotes
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Would you like to protect your home against any damage or an unfortunate event such as a house fire or theft?
Are you wondering if Hastings Direct is the best home insurance company to protect your house?
You’ve come to the right place.
This ultimate and up-to-date review on Hastings Direct home insurance gathers all you need to know: consumers reviews, cover details, prices, claim process, contact numbers and much more. Let’s dive right into it.
Is Hastings Direct the best insurance company for you?
Getting the best home insurance deal is not just about the price. Indeed, focusing on just getting the cheapest deal might be a bad calculation when it comes to getting a good pay-out if your home is damaged as a result of an unfortunate event such as theft, fire or natural disaster.
At Safe, we’ve studied in detail Hastings Direct's home policy terms and conditions and given our own ratings based on different criteria for combined building and contents insurance policy.
4,4 Safe overall rating for Hastings Direct
| Safe rating | Our opinion | |
|---|---|---|
| Customer service & satisfaction and claims |
Great customer reviews on Trustpilot | |
| Cover provided for your home |
Up to £150 000 for contents maximum sum insured | |
| Value for money |
NCD available | |
| Financial strength |
Part of the Hastings Insurance Services Limited gathering People's Choice, InsurePink | |
| Technology |
Customer portal MyAccount to manage policy |
Expert and customer satisfaction reviews for Hastings Direct home insurance
| Review organisation | Hastings Direct home insurance reviews |
|---|---|
Defaqto expert | Essential: 3 stars |
| Trustpilot | 4,3/5 based on 51,834 customers reviews |
| Which? Score | 56% for building insurance |
Our general opinion on Hastings Direct home insurance
Hastings Direct was founded in 1997 and was first only providing car insurance. The company has now become one of the leading insurance provider across the UK and offers home, bike and van insurance. It is part of the famous Hastings Insurance Services Limited gathering brands such as InsurePink or People's choice.
The standard building insurance doesn't come with blockage of sewer pipe cover or gradual build up of groundwater cover, unlike competitors. Cover provided for keys is also quite low. The Premier building insurance plan offers higher protection with Home emergency and Legal expenses included as standard (available as optional extras for standard insurance policy). You can even get up to £200K for alternative accommodation. The Essential building insurance plan, on the other hand, rated 3 stars by Defaqto only offers very basic protection with a maximum building insurance sum insured of 500k and owner's or occupier's liability limit of £1M.
Standard contents insurance does not cover contents in the open or in outbuildings. You will need to get the Premier plan to be covered up to £5000.
However, the standard policy offers great cover for money and credit card at home or away from the home (£500 in Essential Plan).
What does Hastings Direct home insurance cover?
What is more important than protecting your home – the roof under which you sleep with your loved ones?
Applying for home insurance at Hastings Direct will allow you to protect the structure of your home (buildings insurance), what is inside (contents insurance) or both (combined buildings and contents insurance).
Without home insurance, your home is exposed to any kind of risk, from a minor water leak to a fire, and you are liable for any repairs – whatever the cost this represents.
Home insurance at Hastings Direct covers you for any damage made as a result of an unfortunate event such as theft, fire and natural disaster causing leaks, flooding, etc.
Hastings Direct buildings and contents insurance
Hastings Direct provides three main types of household insurance:
- Buildings insurance
- Contents and personal possessions insurance
- Combined policy
Buildings insurance covers the structural aspects of your home. It will cover any damage made to your walls, floors, ceiling, windows, outbuildings, garages, etc. You can also extend your buildings insurance to permanent fixtures such as bathrooms, etc. Buildings insurance is for homeowners.
Good to know
If you buy your property and get a mortgage for this, you will be asked to provide valid buildings insurance. Buildings insurance is not mandatory, though. However, you must know that an average claim for repairing a burst pipe for example is £25 000.
Contents insurance will cover any damage made to your belongings inside your home or in your garden (TV and other appliances, furniture, etc). In other words, it will cover anything which is not structural.
Good to know
House contents insurance is highly recommended (especially in case you get burgled or if you are renting a furnished flat) but is not mandatory.
In the event of a fire, for instance, buildings insurance will give you compensation for your home structure, your walls, roofing or other structural elements damaged during the fire, and contents insurance will cover any damage made to your household appliances, furniture, jewellery and so on.
You will find below policy details for building and contents insurance:
| Hastings Direct building insurance | Limits |
|---|---|
| Maximum sum insured | £1 000 000 |
| Owner liability | £2 000 000 |
| Alternative emergency accomodation | £100 000 |
| Period of home's unoccupancy cover | 30 days |
| Repairs guarantee period | 1 year |
| Trace and access | £5 000 |
| Burst pipe | As standard |
| Blockage of sewer pipe | Not covered |
| Gradual build-up of groundwater | Not covered |
| Subsidence | As standard |
| Underground services | As standard |
| Keys cover | £500 - £1500 (optional) |
| Flood and storm damage (except for fences) | As standard |
Good to know
Limits mentioned above are part of the total sum you insured with your insurer when applying for home insurance (and not in addition to).
Let’s have a look now at Esure contents insurance limits:
| Contents insurance | Limits |
|---|---|
| Maximum sum insured | £150 000 |
| Owner liability | £2 000 000 |
| Alternative emergency accomodation | £10 000 |
| Period of home's unoccupancy cover | 30 days |
| Damage made by pets | Not covered |
| Contents kept in garden | £1 000 |
| Contents kept in outbuildings (garage included) | £3 000 |
| Thefts from outbuildings | £3 000 |
| Single item limit for valuables | £1 500 |
| Items temporarily removed from home | £2 500 |
| Money in and outside the home | Inside: £500 Outside: Up to £10 000 (personal possessions cover available as extra) |
| Credit cards in and outside the home | Inside: £1 000 Outside: Up to £10 000 (personal possessions cover available as extra) |
| Business equipment kept at home | £6 000 |
| Student equipment | £2 500 |
| Keys cover | £500 - £1500 (optional) |
Hastings Direct home insurance additional cover
On top of your Hastings Direct buildings and contents insurance, you can find additional cover such as:
| Home insurance additional cover | |
|---|---|
| Accidental damage cover | Optional extra (included as standard in Premier insurance) |
| Home emergency |
|
| Boiler cover | Not covered |
| Legal protection |
|
| Personal possessions |
|
| Mobile cover |
|
| Bicycle cover |
|
Hastings Direct home insurance excess
The deductible you'll have to pay in case of claims are as described below:
| For both building and contents insurance | |
|---|---|
| Excess for standard claims | £100 |
| Excess for escape water claims | £350 |
| Excess for subsidence claims | £1 000 |
| Excess for personal possessions | £100 |
| Excess for keys | £100 |
Hastings Direct home insurance fees and NCD
To manage your policy, renew, cancel or modify it, Hastings Direct fees are as follows:
| Fees applied to manage your Hastings Directhouse policy | |
|---|---|
| Interests on payment installments | 29,90% |
| To renew my policy | £5 |
| To adjust my policy | £20,0 |
| To duplicate documents | £0 |
| To cancel my policy during cooling-off period | £25 |
| To cancel my policy outside cooling-off period | £35 |
| For payment default | £12 |
| To switch from one insurer to Hastings Direct | Not covered |
How much does Hastings Direct home insurance cost?
You will below indicative quotes for building and contents insurance at Hastings Direct:
| Building insurance | Contents insurance | |
|---|---|---|
| Excess | £100 | £100 |
| Home cover | Building: £250 000 Contents: £20 000 Personal items: £4 000 | Building: £500 000 Contents: £50 000 Personal items: £8 000 |
| Premium | £213,27 | £418,46 |
It is very difficult to give a precise range of how much exactly will your home insurance cost at Hastings Direct as it will mainly depend on:
- The insurance you apply for (building, contents, combined insurance, extras)
- Your address
- Your claim record
- The insured value of your home and of your personal belongings, etc.
Hastings Direct will establish a risk rate, taking into account all these elements, and offer you a price based on it.
The average cost of combined buildings and contents insurance in 2018 was £163, with contents insurance usually counting for a third of the premium (around £60) and building insurance for the rest (around £110). However, premium will be higher if you buy stand-alone building or contents insurance.
Do you want to compare the cheapest home insurance quotes? It couldn’t be easier. Just do a quick home insurance comparison using our comparison tool below. It takes only 15 seconds and is completely neutral and 100% anonymous.
Hastings Direct home insurance discounts available
Discount is given for buying combined policy.
How do I a claim on Hastings Direct home insurance?
To make a claim at Hastings Direct, you first need to have a look at your policy schedule and see which insurer is underwritting your home insurance policy. You can then directly call the claim helpline from your underwriter as mentioned below.
You will be asked to provide your insurance policy number as well as details on claim circumstances such as date and time, pictures or other person involved.
| How to claim on Hastings Direct home insurance? | |
|---|---|
| Claim by phone | Depending on the underwriter: |
Good to know
If you claim is related to a criminal incident (theft, fire etc), you must call the police upfront.
How can I cancel Hastings Direct house insurance?
To cancel your Hastings Direct house insurance, here is what you need to know:
| Cancelling your home insurance at Hastings Direct | |
|---|---|
| Cancellation notice if Hastings Direct cancel your policy | 7 days |
| Cancellation fees | Fees during cooling-off period: £25 Fees outside cooling-off period: £35 |
| Cancel by phone | 0333 321 9681 |
How to contact Hastings Direct home insurance?
| Services | Phone numbers | Opening hours |
|---|---|---|
| Claims | Depending on the underwriter: If you don't know: 0333 321 9681 | 24/7 |
| Renewals | 0333 321 9681 | Monday-Friday 9am-6pm |
| Existing customers | 0333 321 6975 | Monday-Friday 9am-6pm |
Hastings Direct home insurance contact details
| Hastings Direct contact details | |
|---|---|
| Hastings Direct address | Hastings Direct |
| Customer service email | |
| Chatbot available | Web chat is available to discuss quote or make changes to your existing policy. |
How do I log in to Hastings Direct customer portal?
At Hasting Direct, you can log in to MyAccount customer portal to manage your policy online, view your policy schedule, report a claim or make changes.
How do I get Hastings Direct home insurance quotes?
To get a quote online at Hastings Direct, it couldn’t be simpler.
You can go on our home insurance comparison tool here and compare the main home insurance deals on the market. If Hastings Direct is the company that best suits your needs, then you just click on the ‘Get quote’ button and follow the whole process explained online.
To get Hastings Direct home insurance quotes, you will need to provide:
- Your personal information: ID, age, phone number and job
- Your address and postcode
- Your homeowner record (claims included)
- Your home description (type of property, the date it was built, how many square metres inside and outside)
- Your property related status: do you own it, rent it, have a mortgage on it, etc.
- Extras you’d like to get on your home insurance, contents sum insured and the excess you’d like to pay.
The types of questions you will be asked are typically:
- Are you a first-time buyer?
- Has the property ever suffered from subsidence, cracking, subsidence or undergone any underpinning (or showed any signs)?
- Has the property ever been damaged by flood?
- Has anyone living permanently at the property made any home claim(s) for loss or damage in the past X years (usually 3) or had any claim(s) made against them? etc.
5 tips to reduce your Hastings Direct house insurance quote
- Always shop around on home insurance comparison sites. If you do not auto renew and instead apply for new home insurance, you will easily be able to lower your house insurance cost and benefit from new customer discounts.
- Increase the excess amount you are willing to pay in case you make a claim.
- Choose the level of cover that is right for you. Insure with the right sum for both your buildings and contents insurance. If you do not have high value items, consider an ‘indemnity’ contents insurance rather than a ‘new for old’ one.
- Opt for a policy offering No Claim Bonus to lower your premium if you've gone for a few years without making any claim.
- Consider index-linked cover for building insurance to follow prices of building materials.
