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For home insurance taken out remotely, the key is to keep the proposal, policy, certificate and communications with the insurer together. Depending on how you took out your policy, you have 14 days to change your mind (right of withdrawal). For a remote policy, check your circumstances and keep a record of your actions.
Prepare information about the home
You must tell the insurer what cover you wish to take out. The insurer may ask you to complete a questionnaire. This will help the insurer assess the risks and set the premium.
Before answering, gather your contact details and the information you have about the home. You must provide accurate information about your personal circumstances in particular (surname, first name, family status, contact details,...) and precise details about the home to be insured.
To prepare your answers, review the address, type and floor area of the home, the number of rooms, the year of construction, outbuildings, security level and use of the home. You will also be asked to provide an estimate of the value of the property to be covered (furniture, valuables, specific equipment), your occupancy status (owner, tenant…), your insurance and claims history, and the optional cover you want (legal protection, glass breakage, etc.).
Keep a copy of your answers and the estimate you provided. If anything seems uncertain, ask for clarification before confirming rather than leaving approximate information in your file. A false declaration or omission may be considered fraud and may have serious consequences for you.
File the proposal before committing
Before you sign your home insurance policy, the insurer must give you an insurance proposal, which includes the following: Information sheet on prices and cover Copy of the draft policy or a detailed information notice. These documents must be written clearly and legibly (in conspicuous type).
Keep the information sheet with the draft policy or notice. This way, you can review the details of the offer before agreeing and find them later alongside the policy documents. To compare offers, you can file the proposals you receive separately and note the questions to ask each contact.
As you read, identify the applicable limits of cover, such as the list of risks not covered. Also examine the applicable law, the bodies competent to handle disputes and the conditions for triggering cover under liability policies. If a clause seems difficult to understand, make a note of it and ask the insurer to explain it.
The premium is set when the policy is taken out. If you find that this amount does not match the amount shown in the insurance proposal, you may refuse the policy. Keeping the proposal alongside the policy makes this check easier.
Keep the policy and certificate
Once you have reached an agreement with the insurer, it must give you the insurance policy, which includes the general and specific terms and conditions. The general terms and conditions concern, in particular, the risks covered, exclusions, deductibles, procedures for reporting a claim and how premiums are paid.
The specific terms and conditions concern your identity, the description of the insured risk (description and location of the home), the premium and the amount payable at the 1st due date (if payments are split). Check the identity details and description of the home in particular, then compare them with your answers to the questionnaire. Keep the general and specific terms and conditions together so that you can consult both parts of the policy.
Once the policy has been signed and given to the insurer, you will receive an insurance certificate proving that you are covered. File it with the policy and keep it easily accessible in case you need to present it.
Note important dates without confusing them
You must take out home insurance before you move in, so that the home is covered from the first day. In your file, note your planned move-in date and check the information about your cover with the insurer.
Also note the dates of your communications, your agreement and receipt of the documents. This timeline will help you find the documents you refer to when contacting the insurer. Keep messages and their attachments with the proposal and policy.
The insurer must periodically send you a premium notice. This document states the premium to be paid and the date from which you must pay it. File each notice and enter the stated date in your calendar.
Changing your mind: check how you took out the policy
Depending on how you took out your policy, you have 14 days to change your mind (right of withdrawal). For a policy concluded remotely, Service Public mentions, in particular, solicitation by telephone or at home, a response to a direct mailing sent by post or email, and a policy concluded online.
To request cancellation of the policy, you must send the insurer a registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt, stating your intention to cancel your policy. You do not have to justify your decision. Keep a copy of the letter and the records of its dispatch and receipt with the rest of your file.
Nevertheless, you will have to pay the portion of the premium corresponding to the number of days already covered by the policy. The insurer must refund the amounts already paid within 30 calendar days following cancellation. After this period, statutory interest is added to the amounts owed.
You can no longer withdraw if a loss occurred during the withdrawal period and you requested compensation from the insurer. Before acting, therefore, check the circumstances in which you took out the policy and your situation. The Service Public extract used here does not specify when the withdrawal period starts: ask for clarification relevant to your case rather than calculating a deadline on this basis alone.
For a policy signed at an agency or in a shop, Service Public specifies: “Once the policy has been signed and given to the insurer, you can no longer change your mind.” Do not therefore automatically apply the procedure described for a policy taken out remotely to an agreement signed at an agency.
A final check before contacting the insurer
Prepare for your conversation with the proposal, general and specific terms and conditions, certificate and timeline of your actions in front of you. Formulate your question by identifying the relevant document and date. If you want to withdraw from your agreement, specify how you took out the policy and check the applicable procedure before sending your letter.
This guide provides general information, not personalised advice. If your situation is uncertain or a deadline needs to be determined, ask the insurer or a qualified contact for clarification before making your decision.