Introduction:
Insurance is a way of protecting yourself, your belongings and personal possessions against a particular unexpected event, such as a burglary, car accident or losing your income because of illness.
If this happens, the insurer will usually pay out an agreed amount, or an amount to cover the damage, as appropriate.
Some insurance, like third party car insurance, is compulsory - you have to have it if you own or use a car.
General insurance terms
Term |
Description |
Additional Information |
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A change to the standard cover and/or conditions detailed in the policy terms and conditions. |
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Excess |
This is the amount that you must pay towards any claim you make. A compulsory excess is one the insurer applies and a voluntary excess is one chosen by you which is payable in addition to the compulsory excess. |
How to claim on your home insurance. How to claim on your car insurance. Our car and home insurance claims lines are open 24/7, 365 days a year and are |
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Guaranteed acceptance |
You are sure to be accepted for the policy. | |
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Insurance Premium Tax (IPT) |
A UK Government tax on general insurance premiums. The tax will automatically be included in the price of your insurance and is currently charged at a rate of 6% for most insurances and 20% for travel insurance (as at 04/05/11). IPT does not apply to policyholders who live on the Isle of Man or the |
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Instalments |
You may be able to choose which way you would like to pay for your insurance. You could pay monthly (in instalments) if this suits your budget better or a one off premium payment. If you choose to pay monthly for some policies there will usually be additional interest charges. |
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Insured party(ies) |
The person, persons or company who is (are) covered by an insurance policy. | |
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Legal expenses |
see Legal protection cover |
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Legal protection cover & legal expenses |
Legal protection insurance is taken out as optional cover, at an additional cost, with home or motor insurance. It provides cover for legal costs incurred in the pursuit of certain civil claims.
Under car insurance, cover would be provided to help recover uninsured losses in the event of a traffic accident, including personal injury.
Under home insurance, cover would be provided to pursue legal claims for incidents such as employment or boundary disputes.
Terms and Conditions apply. You would not necessarily need to have legal protection cover for both car and home insurance. |
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Panel of insurers |
The insurance companies we use to quote for car and home insurance policies. We do this to make sure you get the best price possible. |
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| The period of time where you are insured for the relevant cover | ||
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Policyholder(s) |
The person(s) named on the schedule of cover. There is normally an option for more than one person to be shown as a policyholder. | |
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Premium |
The amount paid by the policyholder for the insurance | |
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Renewal notice |
The notice sent by the insurance company to the policyholder inviting him/her to renew the policy. | |
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Details the sections of the insurance policy, the sum insured of each area of cover, and shows any endorsements or excesses which may apply. |
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Sum insured |
The maximum amount payable in the event of a claim |
Home insurance
Home insurance helps you protect the place where you and your family live. If you choose to, you can also protect the personal belongings within your home.
It would be nice to assume that our homes are never at risk of burglary, fire, flooding or similar events. However the reality is they may be, so it is important to insure your home and the things in it from serious financial loss.
In order to give you a quote, we'll need information about your home, the type of property, the construction date and materials and the level of cover you require.
Click here for more information
Term |
Description |
Additional Information |
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Standard home insurance policies usually provide some cover for accidental damage. For example, contents policies typically include accidental damage to home entertainment equipment such as a TV; and fixed glass in doors. However, if you would like to ensure you are covered for everyday mishaps, such as knocking over a vase or spilling red wine on a sofa then you will most likely need to extend your cover. Always check to ensure that your home insurance policy gives you the cover you need. |
Our home insurance provides accidental damage cover as standard for certain items, up to the sum insured. You can extend this cover if required by taking the Accidental Damage option for an additional premium. Please refer to the home insurance policy document for full details of the cover provided and the exclusions which apply. |
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| Buildings insurance / cover | Buildings insurance covers your property against loss or damage caused by things like fire, flood and subsidence. |
Please refer to the home insurance policy document for full details of the cover provided and the exclusions which apply. |
| Contents insurance / cover | Contents insurance protects your possessions against damage caused by things like fire, flood, burglary and vandalism. Can include your garden furniture, home computers, pedal cycles, money and even the food in your freezer. |
Please refer to the home insurance policy document for full details of the cover provided and the exclusions which apply. |
| Extended accidental damage cover | In addition to the standard level of cover there is the option to increase the level of cover for an additional cost to include accidental damage for buildings or contents. This would cover events such as a paint spillage on a sofa for contents or putting a foot through the ceiling for buildings. | This is optional cover available on our home insurance policies for an additional premium |
| Public liability | Public liability insurance is designed to cover you in the event of a third party making a claim against you for negligence. |
Our home contents insurance covers you up to £2 million. Please refer to the home insurance policy document for full details of the cover provided and the exclusions which apply. |
Car insurance
To legally drive a car on the road, you must have third party car insurance. Dependent on the cover you choose, car insurance can cover you if you have an accident and also against theft and fire.
We'll need information about the make and model of the car and then we'll use a panel of insurers to ensure we always give you our best quote.
Click here for more information
Term |
Description |
Additional Information |
| Certificate of insurance | The proof of the motor insurance you need by law. The certificate of motor insurance shows: what car is covered; who is allowed to drive the car; and what the car can be used for. If your certificate of motor insurance allows driving by any driver, please refer to your schedule for any restrictions that may apply. | |
| Comprehensive cover | Comprehensive car insurance insures your car against damage, any damage you cause to another vehicle, or injury to drivers and passengers in an accident. Loss or damage to your car through fire and theft is also covered. |
You can find out more about Santander's car insurance here.
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| Key protection cover | Key protection covers any keys and associated locks from loss, theft or damage. If you choose this cover you will receive a key fob which you must place with the keys you wish to protect. | You can choose to add this protection onto your Santander car insurance policy. |
| No claims discount | This is the increasing amount of discount you receive off your insurance premium in recognition of each consecutive year that you haven't made a claim on your car insurance. This is usually capped up to a number of years, but can get you a discount off your premiums. Different insurers will offer different levels of discount. | |
| Personal accident | Will cover you for death or injury, e.g.loss of limbs / sight | You can add this cover to your Santander car insurance policy |
| Protected No Claims Discount | This allows you to protect your no claims discount so you won't lose it if you were to have an accident. Subject to a maximum amount of claims over a given period. This will differ by insurer. Choosing to protect your no claims discount will increase your premium. |
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| Third party only | This is the most basic cover and just covers damage to other people's cars/property. Third party insurance is a legal minimum requirement. |
You can find out more about Santander's car insurance here. |
| Third Party, Fire & Theft | This is the same as third party cover but with added cover in case your car is damaged by fire or stolen. |
You can find out more about Santander's car insurance here. |
Life insurance
If you're looking for a financial safety net for your loved one, if you're looking for Critical illness cover you need to make sure you have the right cover.
We can offer the level of cover you need.
Click here for more information
Term |
Description |
Additional Information |
| Critical Illness Insurance | This is an insurance policy where the insurance provider agrees to pay the policy holder a cash lump sum of money should they die from or are diagnosed with any of the Critical illnesses specified in the insurance policy during its duration. In return for this the policy holder will pay the provider a regular monthly premium. | If you are looking for critical illness cover as well as life insurance, contact us on 0800 587 5053 or visit one of our branches where an adviser will be happy to help you choose the right cover to suit you. |
| Decreasing cover | A decreasing life insurance policy runs for a fixed period of time and aims to pay out a cash lump sum if you die during the policy term. The amount of cover decreases over the term of the policy because it's intended to help pay the rest of your repayment mortgage. | |
| Increasing cover | The sum assured increases each year by the rate agreed. Subject to policy conditions you may be able to add indexations to your policy for an additional cost. Indexation means that the insurer automatically increases the cash lump sum paid so that the amount you receive if a claim is made isn't reduced by the effects of inflation. | |
| Level cover | The sum assured remains the same throughout the term of the plan. | |
| Sum assured or Sum insured |
The amount of benefit that the policy will pay out on death or diagnosis of a critical illness, or on diagnosis of a terminal illness, depending on the type of policy and cover selected. | |
| Term assurance | A life insurance policy that covers an individual if they die during the specified term of the policy. | |
| Whole of life | A life assurance policy that covers an individual until his or her death whenever it occurs, unless it lapses due to non-payment of premium or is cancelled. |
Travel insurance
Travel insurance will cover you or any person named on the policy against a variety of risks before and during your holiday, including cancellation or the loss of personal belongings.
We can offer single or multi-trip travel insurance and we can include winter sports to cover all your needs.
Click here for more information
Term |
Description |
Additional Information |
| Multi-trip cover | If you are going to go on holiday more than once during the year, multi-trip cover will give you the cover for all the trips during this period. | Get a quote now |
Personal Accident insurance
Have you thought how you and your family would manage financially if you suffered an accident and were admitted to hospital, or worse, left permanently and totally disabled? With our Personal Accident insurance policy, you could receive valuable financial help at what would be a very difficult time.
Click here for more information
Term |
Description |
Additional Information |
| Escalation benefit | Premiums and benefits rise every year by an agreed amount. | Premiums and benefits rise every year by 5% of the starting amount. |
| Accident / accidental | A sudden and unforeseen event which happens by chance after the start date and results in bodily injury. | |
| Extending cover | A variation to the standard cover. | For example, if a customer wishes to extend cover due to being outside of the United Kingdom for more than 12 weeks in the preceding 52 week period. |
| Permanent total disability | A disability which medical evidence confirms will last for the rest of your life and which permanently and totally stops you from doing any paid work which your experience, education or training reasonably qualifies you to do. |
If you have another question, maybe our Frequently Asked Questions pages could help
If you want to know what's covered in our policies, click here:
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