Buildings vs Contents Insurance Explained

Key takeaway: Buildings insurance pays to repair or rebuild the structure of your home. Contents insurance pays to repair or replace your belongings. If you have a mortgage or own a leasehold home, MoneyHelper says you’re usually required to have buildings cover. If you rent, the building is your landlord’s responsibility, so contents cover is the part that protects you. ABI figures for April to June 2026 put the average at £309 for buildings-only, £118 for contents-only and £383 for a combined policy.

How we research this page: We don’t sell insurance or set prices. This page summarises published guidance and data from MoneyHelper, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and insurers’ own help pages, checked October 2026. Policy wording varies, so always check the documents for any policy you’re considering. CoverMap may earn commission from some links; see our Advertiser Disclosure.

Buildings vs contents insurance: the difference at a glance

MoneyHelper sums it up simply. Buildings insurance covers the walls, roof and floors, plus permanent fixtures “like fitted kitchen cupboards and your bathroom”. Contents insurance covers “everything that falls out” if you tip your home upside down.

	Buildings insurance	Contents insurance
What it covers	Walls, roof, floors, permanent fixtures such as a fitted kitchen and bathroom. Often garages, outside walls and driveways.	Furniture, clothes, electricals, jewellery and other belongings. MoneyHelper includes fitted carpets.
Typical risks	Fire, flood, storm, vandalism, subsidence, water leaking from pipes	Theft, fire, flood, loss
Who usually needs it	Homeowners. Usually required with a mortgage or a leasehold home.	Anyone with belongings worth protecting: owners and renters
How the amount is set	Rebuild cost, not the market value of the home	Cost of replacing everything you own
Average annual price (ABI, Q2 2026)	£309	£118
Annual price divided by 12	£25.75	about £9.83

Source: MoneyHelper, What is buildings insurance? and What is contents insurance?; ABI Property Insurance Premium Tracker, Q2 2026 (published 3 August 2026). The monthly figures are our own sum (annual average ÷ 12). They are not instalment prices.

So how much does contents insurance cost per month? On the ABI average, £118 a year works out at under £10 a month. Paying by instalments often costs more than this, because many insurers charge interest. ABI averages cover every policy people actually paid for, including renewals. Comparison sites often show lower figures for new policies. Our home insurance cost guide explains why and breaks prices down by region and property type.

Who needs buildings insurance, and who needs contents?

The answer depends mostly on whether you own the home, rent it or let it out.

Your situation	Buildings insurance	Contents insurance
Owner with a mortgage	Usually required	Your choice
Owner, no mortgage	Not legally required, but you’d pay for any repairs yourself	Your choice
Leaseholder (freehold owned by someone else)	Likely included in your service charge	Your own responsibility
Leaseholders who own the freehold together	Jointly responsible for arranging it	Your own responsibility
Tenant	The landlord’s responsibility	Your own responsibility; optional
Landlord	Your responsibility	Landlord insurance can combine buildings and contents cover

Source: MoneyHelper, What is buildings insurance?; Howden, Who pays building insurance: landlord or tenant? (29 October 2025).

Homeowners and mortgages

MoneyHelper says that if you have a mortgage or own a leasehold home, “you’re usually required to have buildings insurance”. If you own outright, nothing forces you to buy it. MoneyHelper still calls having both buildings and contents cover “wise”, because otherwise you would pay thousands in repairs yourself. If you’re buying, see our mortgages guide.

Leaseholders

If you own a flat on a lease and someone else owns the freehold, MoneyHelper says buildings insurance is “likely included in your service charge”. Check your lease to confirm. Your own belongings are still your responsibility, so you would buy contents cover separately.

Tenants

Buildings insurance is your landlord’s job. Contents insurance is not a legal requirement for tenants, but your landlord’s policy will not pay for your possessions. Tenants can also buy tenants’ liability cover. This pays for accidental damage you cause to things the landlord owns. HomeLet, for example, lists fixtures and fittings, white goods, carpets, soft furnishings and integrated appliances. Its examples include a cracked shower tray and carpets ripped by pets. Its standard liability limit is £10,000.

Landlords

Howden says it is “the landlord’s responsibility to organise and pay for buildings insurance”. Landlord insurance can combine buildings and contents cover with extras such as cover if the tenant doesn’t pay rent.

Fixtures, carpets and the garden: which policy pays?

A simple test: if it’s a permanent part of the house, it’s usually buildings. If you’d take it with you when you move, it’s usually contents. The grey areas are where policies differ.

Fitted kitchen and bathroom: buildings, according to MoneyHelper.
Carpets: MoneyHelper counts fitted carpets as contents. Broker Intelligent Insurance says carpets are “usually covered under contents insurance” because they are classed as removable, but adds that cover can vary. Check the wording.
Curtains and kitchen appliances: NFU Mutual reminds people to count these as contents.
Sheds, garden walls and fences: Ageas (November 2024) says sheds are usually covered by buildings insurance, as are garden walls and fences within your boundary. It adds that most standard policies won’t cover storm or flood damage to fences. MoneyHelper also lists “storm damage to gates and fences” as a common exclusion.
Garden furniture, tools and lawnmowers: contents, according to the same Ageas guide. Some policies set a separate limit for garden items.

Combined buildings and contents insurance vs separate policies

Most homeowners can buy both types of cover in one combined policy, or buy each from a different insurer. Here are the trade-offs, according to brokers.

	Combined policy	Separate policies
Claims affecting both	One claim and one excess (SimplyQuote)	Two claims, and possible disagreement over which policy pays
Renewal	One renewal date	Two dates to track
Choice	One insurer for both parts	You pick each insurer separately
Switching	All or nothing	You can switch one part only
Excess	Some policies use the same excess for both parts	Set separately

Source: SimplyQuote, Should I get combined buildings and contents insurance? (16 April 2026); Morrow, Combining buildings and contents insurance (5 January 2026).

The main risk with separate policies is a claim that touches both. Morrow gives the example of “a leak from the bathroom (buildings)” that “ruins the carpets and the sofa below (contents)”. With two insurers, one may say “that’s contents” and the other “that’s buildings”, leaving you stuck in the middle.

Separate policies can still make sense. SimplyQuote names leaseholders whose building is already insured, landlords, people with high-value specialist contents, non-standard properties, and cases where two separate quotes genuinely cost less.

On price, the ABI’s Q2 2026 averages are £383 for combined cover. Adding the buildings-only and contents-only averages gives £427. Those averages come from different households, though, so treat the gap as a rough pointer, not a promised saving.

How much cover do you need?

Buildings: rebuild cost, not house price

Your buildings sum insured should be the cost of rebuilding your home, not its market value. MoneyHelper points people to the free ABI/BCIS rebuild calculator. If you insure for too little, the insurer can reduce your claim in proportion. Our underinsurance guide explains how this works and how to check your figure.

Contents: count room by room

NFU Mutual suggests you “go through your home room-by-room and add up what is in each”. It cites Confused.com data from September to November 2025 that puts the average home’s contents at £45,000–£50,000. Admiral adds that you should include anything in the attic and garage.

Use replacement cost (what it would cost to buy new), not what you paid years ago.
List single items worth more than the policy’s item limit. MoneyHelper says limits are often around £1,500. Admiral asks for items over £2,000 to be named.
Remember carpets, curtains and appliances if your policy counts them as contents.

NFU Mutual gives an example: £40,000 of contents insured for £20,000 means you are 50% underinsured.

Does contents insurance cover moving house?

Sometimes, but it depends on the policy. Lemonade (June 2026) says “most policies only extend cover if you’re using a professional removal company, not a self-drive van”. Sainsbury’s Bank, for example, includes removals cover as standard with its contents insurance, with conditions:

You must use a professional removal contractor. DIY moves are not covered.
Fragile items such as china and glass must be packed professionally.
Storage is covered for 72 hours only.
Valuables and money lost or stolen in the move are excluded.

A removal firm’s own insurance covers different things and can sit alongside your policy. Ask your insurer what applies before moving day. Our moving house insurance checklist covers the rest of the move.

Useful add-ons

Personal possessions (away from home): Aviva describes this as an optional add-on for items you carry with you. It covers them worldwide if they’re lost, accidentally damaged or stolen: phones, laptops, jewellery, sunglasses, handbags and more. Aviva asks for items over £2,500 to be declared. LV= sets a minimum of £2,500 cover, with a £2,000 single-item limit (£5,000 on Home Plus).
Accidental damage: optional on most buildings and contents policies, according to MoneyHelper. It is included in some top-tier policies.
Tenants’ liability: for renters, as described above.

How to compare building and contents insurance

Work out who is responsible for the building: you, your freeholder or your landlord.
Get your rebuild cost and a room-by-room contents total before you ask for quotes.
Check where carpets, sheds and fences fall in each policy’s wording.
Compare excesses, single-item limits and whether accidental damage and personal possessions are included.
Quote for combined and separate cover at the same address.
Look beyond price at claims service and complaints data. Our best UK home insurance providers page summarises Which?, Defaqto and Financial Ombudsman figures.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between buildings and contents insurance?

Buildings insurance covers the structure of your home and permanent fixtures such as a fitted kitchen and bathroom. Contents insurance covers your belongings. MoneyHelper describes contents as everything that would fall out if you tipped your home upside down.

Do I need buildings insurance if I rent?

No. MoneyHelper says buildings insurance is the landlord’s responsibility. Tenants usually only need contents insurance, and may add tenants’ liability cover for accidental damage to the landlord’s fixtures and furnishings.

How much is building and contents insurance?

ABI figures for April to June 2026 show an average of £383 a year for combined buildings and contents, £309 for buildings-only and £118 for contents-only. See our home insurance cost guide for more detail.

How much does contents insurance cost per month?

Dividing the ABI’s Q2 2026 average of £118 a year by 12 gives about £9.83 a month. Paying by monthly instalments often costs more than this, because many insurers charge interest.

Are carpets covered by buildings or contents insurance?

Usually contents. MoneyHelper includes fitted carpets in contents, but policies vary, so check the wording of yours.

Is combined buildings and contents insurance better?

A combined policy means one claim and one excess when damage hits both, such as a bathroom leak that ruins the carpets and the sofa below (Morrow’s example). Separate policies let you choose each insurer, which can suit leaseholders, landlords or people with specialist needs.

Does contents insurance cover moving house?

It depends on the policy. Some insurers, such as Sainsbury’s Bank, include removals cover if you use a professional removal firm. DIY moves are often excluded. Check with your insurer before moving day.