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Hastings Direct
Hastings Direct launched in 1997, selling their first policy the same year.
Now, in 2023, they have more than 3.1 million live customer policies, but their success hasn’t gone to their heads, as they proudly continue to support charity and educational causes in their local communities of Bexhill-on-Sea and Leicester.
Hastings Direct offer a number of financial products including personal loans, van insurance, car insurance, bike insurance, and home insurance.
Who underwrites Hastings Direct
Hastings Direct home insurance policies and additional cover is underwritten by a number of insurers including Advantage Insurance, AXA, Integra, Lloyds Bank, Prestige and RSA.
What types of home insurance does Hastings Direct offer?
Hastings Direct offers three types of home insurance:-
- Buildings insurance
- Contents insurance
- Combined buildings and contents insurance
This insurance is available over two different levels of cover, Hastings Direct and Hastings Premier.
Both levels of cover have different maximum sum insured amounts, so depending on your needs, you may find one more suitable than the other.
The table below shows the maximum sum insured for both levels of cover for buildings and contents insurance.
| Policy | Policy Type | Buildings Maximum sum insured | Contents Maximum Sum Insured |
| Hastings Home Insurance | Buildings | £500,000 | N/A |
| Hastings Premier | Buildings | £1 million | N/A |
| Hastings Home Insurance | Contents | N/A | £75,000 |
| Hastings Premier | Contents | N/A | £150,000 |
What does Hastings Direct buildings insurance offer as standard?
Buildings cover with Hastings is offered on two levels of cover: Hastings Direct and Hastings Premier. While both offer comprehensive cover to protect your home, Premier does come with a few more added benefits.
To help you decide, below is a comparison of what both cover types have to offer.
| Cover | Hastings Direct Home Insurance | Hastings Premier |
| Rebuilding or repairing of your home as a result of fire, storm, flood, subsidence, or other damage. | £500,000 | £1 million |
| Accidental damage to underground drains/pipes | £500,000 | £1 million |
| Alternative accommodation if you’re unable to live in your home after a flood, fire, or other emergency | £50,000 | £200,000 |
| Trace and access | £5,000 | £5,000 |
| Escape of water and oil | £500,000 | £1 million |
| Property owner’s liability | £1 million | £2 million |
| Locks and Keys | £500 | £500 |
What does Hastings Direct contents insurance offer as standard?
Contents cover with Hastings starts at £75,000 but can be increased to £150,000 if you choose to take out their Premier level of cover.
The table below shows a breakdown of what is included with Hastings Direct contents insurance policies.
| Cover | Hastings Home Insurance | Hastings Premier |
| Contents sum insured | £75,000 | £100,000 |
| Valuables limit | £10,000 | £30,000 |
| Single article limit (unless specified) | £1,500 | £1,500 |
| Business equipment | £5,000 | £6,000 |
| Escape of water and oil | Up to the contents sum insured | Up to the contents sum insured |
| Accidental loss of metered water and oil | £1,000 | £2,000 |
| Contents in outbuildings | £2,000 | £5,000 |
| Alternative accommodation | £10,000 | £15,000 |
| Frozen Food | £500 | £1,000 |
| Tenant’s liability | £10,000 | £15,000 |
| Money | £500 | £500 |
| Credit cards | £500 | £1,000 |
| Locks and keys | £500 | £500 |
| Special events increase | £7,500 | £7,500 |
| Visitor belongings | £1,000 | £1,000 |
| Liability to the public and unrecovered damages | £1 million | £2 million |
| Liability to domestic employees | £10 million | £10 million |
Optional extras
Hastings Direct allow you to further tailor your chosen policy with a range of optional extras. These extras include:
Legal expenses cover
Provides cover of up to £100,0000 towards legal costs to support disputes involving employment contracts, probate, your home, school admissions, tax, or if you’ve suffered personal injury or clinical negligence. Also provides legal cover for any family living with you, as well as access to a 24-hour legal helpline operated by RAC.
Home emergency assistance cover
Provides protection against emergencies in the home including boiler breakdowns, roof damage, plumbing issues and more. Hastings will send out a tradesperson on their panel to assess and fix the problem.
Please be aware that if you decide to add one of these extras to your policy, the price of your premiums will increase.
Excess and no-claims discount
When making a claim through your home insurance, you’ll need to pay a minimum fee known as an excess. Excess is most often referred to in two parts – compulsory and voluntary.
Compulsory excess, also known as fixed excess, is the amount set by your home insurance provider and is the amount you must pay when making a claim.
Voluntary excess, on the other hand, is an amount set by you and is intended to be what you can afford to contribute if you need to make a claim. The amount you choose to pay as voluntary excess will be in addition to the amount you pay for compulsory excess.
Hastings Direct state they have a minimum compulsory excess on certain claims, however, these are only disclosed on your policy schedule once you have received a quote.
No-claims discount
Hastings Direct offers a no claims discount whereby, for each year you are claim-free, you will receive a discount on your policy premium. The discount is applied each year you renew your existing policy and can be applied for a maximum of five years.
Defaqto rating
Both Hastings Direct base level of cover, Hastings Direct Home Insurance, and its premium level of cover, Premier, have been awarded a five-star rating by Defaqto for 2023.