Multirisk Home Insurance in France: What it is and How to Sign Up
Home insurance is a contract that will protect your house or apartment from a wide range of damage. Multirisk insurance will include some basic guarantees that usually all insurance providers will offer. But you can also make the choice to add specific options depending on your particular situation. What is basically included in multirisk insurance? Why is it called “multirisk insurance’’? You will find in the following lines a guide to help you understand the general rules and also have a full vision of the different options that may be added to basic multirisk home insurance.
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- Key Points
- All multirisk home insurance includes basic guarantees that will provide you with the minimal insurances that shall be subscribed.
- Besides this common base for all home insurances, you can also subscribe to additional guarantees that will cover specific damages. They are called optional guarantees by the providers.
- All insurance providers do not offer the same guarantees and a high premium is not always a synonym for large coverage. So, do not hesitate to compare, not only the prices but also the different guarantees and deductibles.
What is multirisk home insurance?
As a landlord or tenant of a home or a house in France, you will have to subscribe to home insurance - except for owners of a home outside of a coproperty. Multirisk home insurance is the best option and provides essential coverage to insure your residence or second residence.
In France, multirisk home insurance is an agreement that you will sign with a home insurance provider in order to cover your good from different sorts of damages. The multirisk home insurance (also called MRH) does not only cover the good and most damages caused to the habitation but also the civil liability of the landlord or the tenant and his or her family. The civil liability means that the insurance will cover any damage caused by you or your family to a third person.
The coverage of the multirisk insurance varies depending on the optional guarantees that you will subscribe to (and that will be added to the initial contract) and the basic guarantees.
What kind of damages does the multirisk home insurance cover?
Multirisk home insurance will include some general guarantees that we will describe hereunder.
Included guarantees
Water damage guarantee: it covers the damages caused to your own place but also the damages that may be caused to your neighbours because of a water leak, a water ingress, a pipe break, an overflow, frost damages. Water damage is one of the most common damages. Just in 2017, more than 3000 water damages have been declared each day in France.
Fire and explosion guarantee: You will have general insurance covering the damages on your personal goods in case of the following disasters:
- Fire,
- Smoke incident,
- Combustion
- Conflagration fire
- A fire ignited by a lightning storm,
- An explosion of implosion.
The intervention and damages caused by the firefighters on your goods while they operate on the fire are also covered.
Natural disaster guarantee: The natural disaster guarantee is only applicable to the disaster declared as a “natural disaster” by ministerial order. It may include storms, hurricanes, cyclones, hail fall…
Attack, strike or terrorist attack guarantee: Since its creation in 1986, a specific guarantee covers the risk of attack, terrorist attack, strike, or popular movement that may cause any damage to your goods.
Technological disaster: it covers the risk of damage caused to your property and goods near a classified installation.
Civil liability: this specific guarantee covers the damages caused to third persons by you or one member of your family.
If there is proof that the damage is caused by your negligence, the insurer will very likely refuse to cover the loss.
Options you can add-on to your contract
The theft guarantee: In most cases, theft is not included in the insurer's offers but it might be a good investment as it will offer you an indemnification in case of theft or burglary inside the place you live. In such a case you will have to prove the damage and theft. And as a consequence, the insurer may require a piece of additional safety equipment as an alarm, an armoured door or any other safety system that may protect your good in your absence.
The glass break guarantee: it covers the glass surfaces and is usually included in your MRH insurance with the exclusion of some specific surfaces. Usually, the glass doors, windows and the glass parts of your furniture are covered (including bay window, veranda or glass walls on the balcony).
Each French insurance company may decide to cover all or only part of the previous risks. Be careful when you read the quotes and do not hesitate to ask for an explanation if needed.
In order for you to have the maximum coverage on your goods, most insurers will offer you to subscribe to additional options. As they are not included in the initial offer, they will be charged separately. Here are the most common additional guarantees:
- Theft of bicycles, valuable goods or jewellery,
- Legal protection,
- Full replacement of the furniture,
- Electrical damages,
- Zero deductible (you can subscribe to an option in order to have no deductible in case of damage),
- Swimming pool,
- Garden and goods in the garden,
- Travel,
- Wine cellar,
- Musical instrument,
- Renewable energy installations.
Is multirisk home insurance mandatory in France?
Depending on the situation of the people living inside the house object of the insurance, the obligation to subscribe to multirisk insurance will apply or not.
For a tenant: You are under the obligation to subscribe to home insurance to cover the house or the apartment you're renting. You can opt for multirisk home insurance if you wish.
For a landlord: is the multirisk home insurance mandatory for a landlord? If you live in a condominium, a French law called Alur Law provides the obligation for you to subscribe to MRH insurance and the proof of such subscription may be asked by the management agents of the co-ownership. If you live in an independent house (that is not in a condominium property), there is no obligation for you to subscribe to French insurance for the place you live in. Nevertheless, it is strongly advised to have insurance.
How to choose multirisk home insurance?
In order for you to choose multirisk home insurance, you have to be able to compare different offers and different insurers. In order to do so, do not hesitate to ask for quotes and look carefully at the different coverages.
Ask for quotes
In order for you to have a better view and make your own opinion on the different offers, ask for quotes. This is the best way for you to understand the market and decide what insurance you want to subscribe to. As you will see, the price is not the only criterion to compare as it is not always a synonym of wide coverage.
You have to look carefully at:
- The coverage
- The added options included
- The exclusions
- The deductible and maximum amounts
- And also, of course, the price.
The price may vary depending on the following criteria:
- Your profile: age, family, landlord or tenant…
- The nature of the place you live in: house or apartment, ground floor or last floor, main home or holiday home.
- The size of the place you want to insure: number of rooms, size of the land and size of the inhabited area…
- The geographic location of the place insured. The risk may vary regarding the location: sea, mountain or flood risk areas…
- The value of the furniture that you will declare and insure.
- The different options subscribed to, for some specific risks such as a swimming pool, electrical damages…
- The deductible: it can be adapted by the insurer depending on your situation.
Therefore, depending on the different values declared, the options added and the specificity of your situation the price may vary from one insurer to another.
Do not forget to ask for quotes and compare!
Home insurance quote
Receive a free home insurance quote from one of our partner providers.
You can ask for quotes for multirisk home insurance online, by answering several questions and giving details about your profile and information regarding your situation. You will have to answer also several questions about your previous insurances and the previous claims you may have declared. That may lead to an increase in your premium.
Below is our selection of the two French insurers we recommend for expats and any non-French person moving to France, as both providers are experienced in dealing with English customers, and offer quotes and customer service in English.
The following quotes are for an adult tenant, employed, living in a 20 square metre studio in Toulouse. All quotes cover civil liability, fire damage, water damage, natural disasters, technological disasters, riots and acts of terrorism.
Name of the insurer | What coverage will you get? | Price per year (with tax) | For more information |
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€103 | Get your free quote now (in English) |
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€123.84 | Get your free quote now (in English) |
Quotes created on 11/04/2019 on each above provider's website. Conditions apply.
You can also go directly to different agencies, talk to an agent and ask for quotes. He or she will be able to answer all your questions and may give you an explanation about the premium and the price of the options for your specific situation.
Choose the right coverage for the value of your goods
The coverage by multirisk insurance for the goods inside your apartment or your house is made at the real value. It means that at the subscription of the insurance you will have to provide the insurer with the value of the goods you want to guarantee: furniture, appliances, high-tech equipment…).
This is a specific and important step as it will determine the maximum coverage you may pretend to in case of any damage.
On the other hand, this evaluation will also determine the amount of the premium you will have to pay. The more your goods are valuable, the more the premium will increase. Therefore, do not forget to compare the different offers you can ask!
Compare the different quotes
Once you have been provided with the different quotes, take your time and compare:
- the coverage,
- the prices,
- the different deductibles and maximum amounts
- the options included in the offers.
Home insurance quote
Receive a free home insurance quote from one of our partner providers.