Compare our best student contents insurance

In addition to offering the same benefits as standard contents insurance, student home insurance policies typically feature a range of extra benefits, including:

Student contents insurance covers your belongings while you're away at university.

Student contents insurance typically covers:

• Gadgets, like your laptop, phone, tablet or games consoles you have with you in your student accommodation.

• Furniture and kitchen items you've taken with you. For example, a kettle or toaster.

• Books, like those pricey textbooks you might have sitting around.

• Clothing

Before you buy a policy, make sure you've double checked what exclusions are stated. You may need to look at buying some optional extras if the standard level of cover isn't enough.

A standard student contents policy doesn't typically cover:

• Items taken outside of your accomodation:

  Most policies won't cover items like laptops, phones, and other gadgets when they're taken outside your accomodation. You'll need to buy optional personal possessions insurance or gadget insurance if you're carrying them around campus.

• Theft without forced entry:

  Claims for theft might be denied if there was no sign of forced entry or evidence of a break-in.

• High value items:

  A single-item limit often applies, meaning that items exceeding a certain value won't be covered unless specifically listed on the policy.

• Bicycles:

  Bikes are frequently excluded but can be added on as an optional extra.

• Accidental damage:

  This is usually another optional add-on that isn't usually included in a standard policy.

• Cosmetic damage: This is damage that doesn't affect the functionality of the item. For example, if you get a scratch on your phone.

• Unoccupied periods: Many student contents insurance policies will not give cover if the accomodation has been left empty too long, usually over 30 days.

• Wear and tear: Wear and tear from normal usage isn't covered.

• Building damage: Contents insurance only covers the items in the house, not the structure of the property itself.

Before you buy a policy, make sure you've double checked what exclusions are stated. You may need to look at buying some optional extras if the standard level of cover isn't enough.

While student contents insurance isn't legally required for a shared house, it's highly recommended to protect your belongings from theft, loss, or damage. Landlords' insurance typically covers the building only.

Living in a shared house comes with its own set of risks when it comes to your possessions. These include an increased amount of foot traffic and the potential for items to go missing.

Some insurance policies might offer a joint-policy for all housemates. This covers a group of students in a shared house under one policy. This can be more cost-effective as you can split the cost, and protects your belongings in communal areas.

If you opt for individual contents insurance, your personal items will be protected rather than the household's items. You'll need to check whether your policy covers belongings if they're in communal areas of the house though.

Student possessions insurance covers your belongings when you're outside the home. For example, if you're taking your laptop and your phone to lectures. Or if you're cycling to campus on a bike.

A student contents insurance policy won't typically cover your items outside the home. So it's worth looking at student possessions insurance as an optional extra. Especially if you frequently take valuables with you outside of your accommodation.

Student gadget insurance can be a good option if you're frequently taking valuable electronics outside the home.