Property insurance covers two distinct realities that homeowners often confuse: home insurance, which protects the dwelling and its contents, and borrower insurance, which covers loan repayment. Each meets different legal obligations, has its own compensation mechanisms, and presents contractual pitfalls that cannot be identified by merely reading commercial brochures.
Natural disaster surcharge: what changes from January 2025
As of January 1, 2025, the surcharge for natural disasters is set at 20% of premiums excluding taxes for contracts concluded or renewed from that date. This increase, applied uniformly, raises the overall cost of home insurance, including for properties located in low-risk areas.
This mechanical increase is not related to the level of coverage chosen by the insured. It applies to both multi-risk contracts and basic formulas, which reduces pricing flexibility when comparing insurers.
A point of caution concerns the distinction between climate-related claims. A forest fire that reaches a home is generally covered by the fire guarantee of the home insurance contract, not by the natural disaster regime. The latter only covers damages caused by a natural phenomenon of abnormal intensity recognized by inter-ministerial decree. The compensation procedure and timelines differ depending on the applicable regime, and a declaration error can delay coverage by several months.
To effectively compare offers in this area, the insurance offered by Immogenius provides access to a structured reading grid of home guarantees, including this surcharge item often buried in the general conditions.
Cancellation after a claim: insurer practices under scrutiny
A home insurance contract can be canceled by the insurer after a claim. This practice is legal, but an investigation conducted among fourteen organizations revealed concerning abuses.
Among the reported cases: cancellations based on non-responsible claims, water damage that did not result in any compensation, or events already known to the insurer at the time of subscription. These situations place the insured in a difficult position, as finding a new insurer after a cancellation due to claims history can be lengthy and costly.
The problem is particularly acute in condominiums. Water damage originating from common areas or a neighboring unit can be counted in the claims history of the affected co-owner, even though they are not at fault. Field feedback varies on how insurers handle these cases, and the current regulatory framework does not clearly resolve the issue of liability.
What to check before signing
- The cancellation clause after a claim: some contracts provide for a longer notice period or limit cancellation to only responsible claims, offering better protection
- The method of accounting for claims: check if non-responsible claims or those without compensation are included in the claims calculation
- The conditions for tacit renewal: a contract canceled by the insurer at the annual due date does not offer the same recourse as a cancellation during the year after a claim
Borrower insurance: the right to be forgotten and health data
Borrower insurance constitutes the second aspect of property protection. It guarantees loan repayment in case of death, disability, work incapacity, or job loss. Since the Lemoine law of 2022, any borrower can change insurers at any time, without fees or penalties.
The health questionnaire remains a sensitive point. A medical omission can lead to a refusal of coverage when the contract is triggered, even if premiums have been paid for years. The good faith of the insured is assessed on a case-by-case basis, but the burden of proof heavily rests on them.
The right to be forgotten allows certain pathologies not to be declared after a defined period, particularly for former cancer patients. Recourse exists when an insurer applies a surcharge or exclusion despite compliance with this period, but available data does not allow for conclusions about the actual frequency of these disputes.
Borrower guarantees to be weighed according to profile
Not all guarantees carry the same weight depending on the borrower’s situation. Death and total and irreversible loss of autonomy are systematically required by banks. In contrast, job loss coverage remains optional and often comes with restrictive conditions (waiting period, capped compensation duration, exclusion of mutual termination).
- Total or partial permanent disability covers situations where the borrower can no longer perform their professional activity, with varying triggering thresholds depending on the contracts
- Temporary work incapacity covers monthly payments during a sick leave, but the definition of incapacity varies from one insurer to another
- The insured portion (the share of capital covered by each co-borrower) deserves precise calculation: a 100% share on each head costs more but fully protects the surviving co-borrower
Group contract or insurance delegation: a persistent rate gap
The bank systematically offers its group contract when signing the loan. This contract pools the risk among all borrowers, which smooths the rates but penalizes young or non-smoking profiles. The insurance delegation allows choosing an external contract, often at a significantly lower rate for these profiles.
Guarantee equivalence is the legal condition for the bank to accept a delegated contract. It compares the guarantees of the external contract with those of its group contract using a standardized sheet. A refusal can only be justified by insufficient coverage based on the criteria listed in this sheet.
Changing insurers during the loan remains possible at any time thanks to the Lemoine law. The process requires obtaining a new contract with at least equivalent guarantees, then submitting the substitution request to the bank, which has ten working days to respond. A refusal must be justified in writing.
Choosing between a group contract and delegation is not just about comparing a rate. Age, health status, remaining loan duration, and outstanding capital affect the interest of the switch. For a borrower over 50 with a medical history, the group contract may remain competitive. For a first-time buyer in good health, delegation generates significant savings over the total loan duration.
