Contents insurance for shared flats – Contents insurance for rented and shared flats

Your flatmate’s loudspeaker doesn't work anymore after a lightning struck your house. Is this covered by your contents insurance? The answer is yes! Find out why in this article:

What does your contents insurance cover?

Here's what happened

You'd never let the raging storm outside stop you and your friends from celebrating! So the music is loud, your flat is a dance floor and the party is in full swing.

After an extraordinary group performance of "Bohemian Rhapsody" you drift blissfully through the apartment and can barely hold on to yourself when "I want it that way" starts to play. But instead of the eagerly awaited answer to "Tell me why", only a bright flash illuminates you, closely followed by absolute silence and a little later the roar of a loud thunder. It quickly becomes clear that the lightning was to blame for a short circuit that irreparably destroyed the loudspeaker.

Fast forward to the next day around noon. Sitting in between empty bottles and eating yesterday’s pizza for breakfast, you and your flatmates discuss what to do about the broken speaker. You’ve got contents insurance, but the loudspeaker belongs to your flatmate - that's why you call Getsafe and ask a few questions:

Lightning struck our house and damaged a device. Is this damage covered by contents insurance?

Contents insurance covers various risks for losses incurred. These include damage caused by tap water, fire, storm & hail - and even short circuits after a lightning strike. In other words, yes, this is generally one of the insured risks.

But it’s my flatmate’s loudspeaker that broke, and not my own. Does my contents insurance still pay for it, even though I’m the policy holder, not my flatmate?

Yes, your contents insurance covers your belongings and those of your flatmates if you live in a shared flat - i.e. in the same household - and your flatmates are also listed in your contents insurance! This also applies to other people who live in the same household with you and are registered at your address with their primary residence. This can affect your parents, children, siblings, grandparents or your partner, for example.

Since the short circuit was caused by a lightning strike, we usually cover the damage. It would have been different if the loudspeaker had been the victim of a fallen beer bottle: this would be a clear case for the liability insurance of the person who dropped the bottle.

Fun Fact: Frozen goods are also covered by contents insurance. Even your frozen pizza could be insured if the lightning strike broke your fridge.