Property insurance
Find your property insurance price
Answer a few questions to see which policy fits and its minimum price. It’s the same at every insurer.
What do you want to insure?
What property insurance covers and pays
The Nepal Insurance Authority sets one policy wording for every insurer, so these rules are the same wherever you buy.
What each policy covers
House and Property policies cover the same events. Only the House policy covers theft.
| Covers | House policy | Property policy |
|---|---|---|
| Fire, and damage while putting it out | Yes | Yes |
| Earthquake | Yes | Yes |
| Flood, inundation, hail, snow, burst or leaking pipes | Yes | Yes |
| Storm, cyclone, landslide, subsidence, lightning | Yes | Yes |
| Explosion or implosion | Yes | Yes |
| A vehicle, train or animal hitting the building; falling trees or poles | Yes | Yes |
| Riot, strike, malicious damage, terrorism | Yes | Yes |
| Theft, robbery, burglary | Yes | No |
| Death or injury of you or your family at home, caused by a covered event (Rs 7,00,000 per person for a death) | Yes | No |
| Architect or engineer fees, and debris removal | Yes | Yes |
Never covered
- Land value
- Computer data
- Appliances damaged by a power surge (a direct lightning strike is covered)
- Wear and tear, and machinery breaking down by itself
- War, and nuclear or chemical weapons
- Lost income (a business can add Consequential Loss cover for it)
Source: House and Property policy wordings, clauses 3–5; Property Insurance Directive 2080, s.6–7
What a claim pays
The same flood damage, worked out for a home insured in full and for too little.
A claim rarely pays the full repair bill. Here is the same flood damage worked out twice: once with the home insured for its full value, once insured for too little.
Insured for the full value
A 10-year-old house worth Rs 50 lakh, insured for Rs 50 lakh. A flood does Rs 4 lakh of damage.
| Repair cost | Rs 4,00,000 |
|---|---|
| Minus wear and tear on the building2% a year × 10 years = 20% | − Rs 80,000 |
| Minus your share of the claim5% for flood or earthquake (1% for anything else) | − Rs 16,000 |
| The insurer pays | Rs 3,04,000 |
Insured for too little
The same house, insured for only Rs 30 lakh (60% of its value). The same Rs 4 lakh of damage.
| Repair cost | Rs 4,00,000 |
|---|---|
| Minus wear and tear on the building2% a year × 10 years = 20% | − Rs 80,000 |
| Cut to 60%, because only 60% of the value was insured | − Rs 1,28,000 |
| Minus your share of the claim5% for flood or earthquake (1% for anything else) | − Rs 9,600 |
| The insurer pays | Rs 1,82,400 |
The rules behind these numbers
- Wear and tear
- A building loses 2% of its value a year (a factory building 5%, machinery and tools 10%), never more than 50% of the sum insured in total. Nothing is taken off a Rebuild as new or Agreed value policy.
- Your share
- 5% of each claim for flood, other water damage or earthquake, and 1% for anything else.
- Insure the full value
- If you insure for less than 85% of the value, a claim is cut in the same proportion. The cut doesn’t apply to a small loss (up to 10% of the sum insured or Rs 10 lakh, whichever is less) or a total loss.
- Smallest claim
- Rs 5,000. Below that, nothing is paid.
- Paid on top, within the sum insured
- Architect or engineer fees up to 3% of the claim, and debris removal up to 10% of the claim or Rs 10 lakh, whichever is less.
Source: House and Property policy wordings, clauses 4, 16, 19–21
Common questions
5 questions, with where each answer comes from.
Is there a waiting period?
No. Cover starts at the date and time printed on the schedule, which can be at most 7 days after the policy is issued.
The premium counts as paid only once the insurer’s signed and stamped receipt is issued.
Source: Directive s.10(2)–(3); wording clause 8
Are furniture, gold and jewelry covered?
On a House policy, yes: furniture and fittings, and cash, gold, silver, jewelry and diamonds, each declared on its own line. Theft of them is covered too.
A Property policy’s form has no line for cash, gold or jewelry, so ask the insurer how they would be covered. Theft is never covered on a Property policy.
Under “other items”, anything worth more than Rs 5,00,000 must be listed by name. Machinery worth more than Rs 1 lakh is listed with its purchase date.
Source: Directive s.9; Schedules 1, 2, 7 and 8
My home is worth more than Rs 2 crore. What changes?
It goes on a Property policy, which has no theft cover and no family accident payment. You can’t split one house into a House policy for Rs 2 crore and a Property policy for the rest, and no separate jewelry policy is sold any more.
Source: Directive s.12, s.16(6), s.47; wording clause 4
What if I sell the property, or it stays empty?
Move the policy to the buyer within 30 days, at no charge. If it isn’t moved within 60 days of the sale, it ends.
If the building will be empty for more than 60 days, get the insurer’s written consent first.
Source: Wording clauses 13, 17 and 18
Can I insure for less than a year?
Yes, but a short policy costs more per month than a full year. Example: if a full year costs Rs 10,000:
| Cover for | Share of the year’s price | You pay |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1 month | 15% | Rs 1,500 |
| Up to 3 months | 40% | Rs 4,000 |
| Up to 6 months | 70% | Rs 7,000 |
| Up to 9 months | 85% | Rs 8,500 |
| More than 9 months | 100% | Rs 10,000 |
A short policy can’t be extended later. Buy a new one when it ends.
Cancelling early: the insurer keeps the price for the time you were covered, from the same table, and refunds the rest. Example: you cancel a Rs 10,000 policy after 2 months. The insurer keeps Rs 4,000 and refunds Rs 6,000. If you have already made a claim, there is no refund.
Source: Directive s.11, s.33; wording clause 13
Read more
- Property insurance pricesThe lowest premium the regulator allows, at every insurer.See the prices →
- Claim estimateWork out what a claim would pay after fire, flood, earthquake or other damage.Estimate a claim →
- Property insurance policyFor buildings and contents that are not a home: shops, offices, factories, warehouses and more.Read the policy →