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Student Contents Insurance

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What is students contents insurance?

Contents insurance for students is a type of home insurance that will cover your possessions against theft, loss, or damage while at university. You can get contents insurance for a house share, or while living in halls of residence. 

According to the Office of National Statistics, households of 16-24 year olds are 43% more likely to be burgled than any other age group*. This combined with the amount of new faces and visitors that come and go in shared student accommodation put students’ contents at risk. 

With students contents insurance, your personal belongings like electronics, wallet, cash, jewellery and furniture can all be protected. This means you save on the unwanted expense of repairing or replacing these essential items when things go wrong.

Do students need contents insurance?

Before you invest in student or house share insurance, it’s best to check that your possessions are not already covered elsewhere. If not, students contents insurance can step in to protect your new and valuable possessions at uni.

Parent’s or guardian’s home insurance policy

If they have buildings and contents home insurance with personal possessions cover, this could cover your belongings while you are away at university. Just be sure to check the policy details for any limits and exclusions for this cover. 

Some policies will limit the amount you can claim for a single item. So if this limit is £1,000, and you want to cover a laptop that costs £2,000, you might want to consider additional gadget insurance. 

Packaged bank accounts or mobile phone contracts

Some bank accounts or contracts may include insurance cover for gadgets. So see if you already bought protection for items like your phone or laptop when you first purchased them.

University halls contents insurance

Some uni halls will offer some contents insurance to their residents, but it is usually very limited. You can check what is covered, and decide if you want to invest in additional insurance for high value items like your bike, phone, or laptop. 

What does student contents insurance cover?

What this covers will depend on if you are insuring your own possessions, or are buying contents insurance for a whole house share with your housemates.  If you take out contents insurance alone, only items in your own locked room are protected. When you insure the entire home’s contents, items anywhere in the home are covered.  Like with other types of home insurance, contents insurance for students in shared houses can be tailored to your needs.

Typical coverage options include

  • Theft – Your insurer will help you with the cost of replacing insured items that are stolen from your accommodation.
  • Fire Damage – In the event of a fire, possessions like your furniture, clothes and valuables are all covered. 
  • Water Damage – If your things are ruined or need repaired because of water damage in the home, your insurer can help.
  • Vandalism – Offers support if your possessions are damaged or lost because of vandalism.

Add additional protection options like

  • Accidental damage – covers one-off accidents like your TV falling off its bracket and smashing. 
  • Personal possession cover – protects your belongings even when they are outside of your room or home. 
  • Higher single-item limits – You can tailor this to cover specific items like a gaming computer that exceeds standard policy limits.
  • Bike insurance –  You can add bicycle insurance to your contents for comprehensive protection. 
  • Gadget insurance – This can also be taken out with contents insurance if you have a specialist item like a camera you want to insure.

Common exclusions on students contents insurance for a shared house

  • Items left in communal areas (when you have only insured your own belongings).
  • Theft when the door is left unlocked. This applies to full home, and individual student contents insurance policies. 
  • High-value items that exceed the maximum claim limit for a single item. 
  • Theft without forced entry, if there are no visible signs of a break-in.
  • Belongings that are left in student accommodation that have been unoccupied for a specified amount of time. Usually over 30 days.

How much does contents insurance for students cost?

Insurance costs are generally calculated in relation to risk. The more risk that comes with your particular circumstances, the higher the cost of your student contents insurance. This is calculated depending on several factors, including:

  • Your location – This lets insurers know the crime rates in your area and how many people in the same area claim on contents insurance.
  • Type of accommodation – Halls of residence, shared houses, or private rentals all come with different risk levels.
  • Amount of cover – The value of your belongings will influence the cost. High-value items will cost more to replace. 
  • Extra coverage – If you choose to include extras like accidental damage cover for students contents, this will usually come at an added cost.
  • Your claims history – If you have had a previous home contents insurance policy, you could have built up a no-claims bonus. This is where you are rewarded for not making claims with discounts. This is because you have demonstrated that you are a low risk to insurers. Alternatively, if you have made previous claims, this could mean higher costs.

Tips to find cheap contents insurance for students

Here at Quotezone, we are insurance comparison experts. Here are insider tips that could help you to get cheaper student contents insurance quotes.

Give an accurate value for your belongings

When you compare quotes, you will be asked for the total value of your possessions. If you do not take the time to accurately calculate this you could risk over insuring. This means you would be paying for more cover than you need.

Increase the excess on your policy

Voluntary excess is the amount you agree to pay towards any claim that you make. Choosing a higher voluntary excess can reduce your premium costs. However, make sure it’s still affordable, in case you need to make a claim.

Pay annually

Paying for your insurance monthly comes with added interest. So if you can pay for the whole year upfront, you can save money overall.

Improve security

Installing approved locks on your doors where it is allowed can reduce your premium, as it lowers the risk of theft.

Bundle policies

If you already have standalone bike or gadget insurance, it could be more cost-effective to bundle these with your contents insurance. Likewise, if you are a tenant in a house share, it could be cheaper to insure everyone’s things on one policy and split the cost, rather than taking out multiple policies.

Compare quotes

Shopping around and comparing quotes means you don’t miss cheap options for student contents insurance. At Quotezone we let you do this quickly and easily. Simply fill in a few details on our quote form, and compare quotes from over 40 UK home insurance providers.

How to get students contents insurance

Getting contents insurance for students in a shared house or halls is simple.

Fill in a few details on our quote form. These include your address, what you want to insure, and the value of your contents.

Compare contents insurance for students. Review the policy details and choose the option that best meets your needs and budget.

Complete your purchase on the insurer’s website or over the phone and enjoy peace of mind, so you can focus on getting that first.

How to make a claim on student contents insurance

Report the incident – Contact your insurer as soon as possible. Be clear on what happened and provide the details that they request.

Gather evidence – This will support your claim and can include taking photos or videos of the damage, providing receipts, or other proof of ownership or value of the item you are claiming for.

Submit the claim – Insurers will have a claim form for you to fill in and submit along with any evidence you’ve gathered. Once submitted, the insurer will review the claim and arrange for compensation or replacement of the lost or damaged item.

Contents insurance for students FAQs

Can students get contents insurance for house shares?

Yes, if you want house share insurance that covers the contents of everyone in the home on one policy, you can take out contents insurance for the entire house share. This could be cheaper than each student buying individual policies. However, it does come with more risk of people needing to claim, which could ruin a no-claims discount, and lead to higher premiums in future.  

What is accidental damage cover for students?

Accidental damage cover offers protection from one-time accidents that damage your belongings. This could include spilling a drink over your laptop, dropping jewellery down the drain, or burning an expensive item of clothing with straighteners. It is usually available as an add-on to standard student contents insurance. 

Do I need student contents insurance if I live in halls of residence?

Some university halls will offer some contents insurance to student residents. However, this is usually very limited and is unlikely to cover more expensive items like your laptop or other electronics. Checking what coverage, if any, your uni halls offer is a good place to start when determining if you need your own student contents policy. 

Do I need student insurance if I still live at home?

If you live at home and your parents or guardians have home contents insurance, your belongings will typically be covered under this. However, this can be limited, and might not cover particularly valuable items, or items when they are out of the house. So if, for example, you want to cover an expensive laptop that you take to uni, you could benefit from your own student’s contents or gadget insurance. 

Are a student’s things covered by parents’ home insurance?

If the student lives at home, their things will typically be covered under any home contents insurance. However, if they live away from home for university, they may not be covered. This will depend on if you have personal possessions cover, and the limitations outlined in the policy details. 

Does student contents insurance cover smartphones?

It can, but you will need to ensure the value of the phone does not exceed the single-item limit on the student contents insurance policy. Typically, this will start at £1,000 per item, however, you can increase this to ensure your more valuable items are also protected. 

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*https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/howmuchdoyoureallyknowaboutcrime/2018-11-06

*51% of consumers could save £209.33 on their Home Building & Contents Insurance. The saving was calculated by comparing the cheapest price found with the average of the next fourteen cheapest prices quoted by insurance providers on Seopa Ltd’s insurance comparison website. This is based on representative cost savings from December 2024. The savings you could achieve are dependent on your individual circumstances.