Compare Cooker Insurance

FAQs

Is Cooker Insurance Worthwhile?

Despite the fact that cookers are one of the least likely appliances you should have to replace regularly in your household, most will only be bought with a year-long manufacturer’s guarantee. This leaves you facing a hefty bill should you have to repair or replace the appliance suddenly beyond this time frame. As with all electricals, any future breakdowns are unlikely to occur within this first year anyway.

You may need to take out cover if:

• Your manufacturer’s guarantee is about to run out. Leaving your appliance uninsured can be costly should something abruptly go wrong.
• Your oven is expensive. Compare the overall cost of your chosen extended warranty policy against replacing your appliance, bearing in mind what a similar model would cost in a few years’ time. If you wouldn’t be able to exchange it for a much lesser price, insurance provides you with added security. This is particularly relevant to range cooker protection, as these can cost thousands of pounds.
• You’d need it again ASAP. Insurance would prevent you having to save up for a new appliance, which could take a while. You can have a good-as-new or even a brand-new appliance before you even start to miss it.

What Will Your Cooker Insurance Cover?

As with most electronics, there is a lot that can go wrong. The harm these problems cause can be widely differing, but even the smallest malfunction commonly renders the object unusable.

The majority of policies cover repairs and replacement parts, with some even offering to exchange your item with a like-for-like match if it is irreparable. Check with your policy provider to see what aftercare they provide, and make sure you are completely happy with that support.

Ovens

With ovens, the internal fan could stop working if there is one, so the temperature isn’t adequately regulated. The heating elements or thermostats may fail to reach optimum temperature. Buttons may break or become ineffective, so you can’t turn it on properly or choose particular settings. The oven door may not shut correctly or seal, losing heat. If your oven contains a grill function, this may stop working separately to your oven function. The entire machine could quite easily stop working altogether. A technician can either replace or repair individual parts or replace the entire item if it is too complicated or impossible to rectify.

Hobs

With your hob, the heating plates or burners may not warm up sufficiently, or the buttons which operate them may stop regulating the power. The flames from your gas hob may become erratic, yellow/orange rather than blue, or be smaller than usual. Turning on an electrical appliance may trip your household’s electricity supply, which signals a problem with the circuit, plug or item itself. Ceramic, induction and gas-on-glass hobs can also easily crack or become damaged due to cleaning or hot food spillages and are currently expensive to replace. A technician can replace parts and switches, clear blockages caused by cleaning products or food, and ensure your appliance is entirely safe to use.

Range Cookers

Range cookers are often a lot more complicated, as they are real all-in-one devices. Depending on your particular model, there may be 5+ burners, a grill, multiple ovens and even a built-in slow cooker. Some also offer very specific functions, such as defrosting and browning elements. They’re commonly a lot more complicated internally than standalone stoves or ovens, and although they go wrong a lot less frequently, it is an extremely costly problem when they do. Range cookers are a lot more expensive than other cooking appliances, and you may even have a traditional Range which is 20+ years old and pretty invaluable to you.

Hoods and Extractors

Cooker hoods have three main elements – the motor, light, and control switches. The former does all the main work, pulling in any odours and releasing them once they have been neutralised by the filter. The latter regulates the motor and lights. Generally speaking, your cooker hood is unlikely to malfunction as they are often built to last. However, it may be faulty if it is not pulling in or releasing the air efficiently, which can commonly be fixed by either cleaning or replacing the filter. But if the electrical controls stop working or your problem persists, contact a professional.

Gas Appliances

If you have a gas appliance, you should always install a gas or carbon monoxide detector. Your item should also be serviced regularly according to the product manual, and it should always be checked over if it is not working optimally.

Are There Any Incidents Not Covered?

Insurers are unlikely to cover you for any pre-existing faults which are present when the policy is taken out. This is why many will not help you financially or will charge you a substantial excess bill if you claim within the first 30 days of taking out your plan.

Some may also not provide accidental damage cover, so anything that was explicitly caused by mishandling or human fault cannot be claimed for (like cosmetic damage). This includes damage from using cleaning products not recommended for your specific device, such as harsh scourers on a glass surface.

There is also often an age limit on the appliances some companies will cover. This can range from between 6-10 years, give or take. It is thought that most electrical devices only last for this amount of time anyway and cannot be as easily fixed or replaced with a like-for-like model due to the rapid changes in modern technology. If you have a range cooker that is over a decade old, for example, check with any prospective insurers to see if you’d be covered first.

If your cooking appliance is used for professional or commercial purposes within your home, such as if you have a baking company, there may be clauses which mean you aren’t insured due to frequent use.

Replaceable accessories such as fuses and bulbs are also usually not covered, either, even if an engineer has to replace them.

How Much Does Cooker Cover Cost?

You may have a specific primary prerequisite in mind, such as purely wanting the cheapest cooker cover available or a policy which will cover you for costs of up to £3000. There is something out there for the majority of wishes, and we compare a wide assortment.

Prices start from only a couple of pounds per month, up towards around £20. It is all dependent on who your insurance provider is, how many items you are insuring, what exactly it is you are covering, and how long your policy will last.

There are some with long-term contracts rather than the standard 12 months, and some which allow you to cancel at any time without extra charges, giving you full flexibility. If they are pay-monthly, think about how much it will cost you overall for a long amount of time. Also enquire about paying the full cost upfront or annually if you are in a position to do so, as this can work out cheaper.

Why Doesn’t Your Home Insurance Cover Your Cooking Appliances?

Home and contents insurance will likely protect your home appliances from fire or flood damage, but not mechanical breakdown or accidental damage caused by an owner/home occupant. This is why it is essential to have separate appliance insurance. Check the small print of your particular insurance policy first, though.

Is Single- or Multi-Appliance Cooker Insurance Best?

If you own various kitchen appliances and would like to protect them all together, a multi-appliance policy is often the most cost-effective and hassle-free option. There is insurance available which will only cover your kitchen appliances, or if you have other items across your home that you’d like to safeguard (such as media systems or small pieces of equipment), there are policies which will include all of these under one single contract.

If, however, you have a particularly complicated cooking appliance (such as a Rangemaster or Aga) you may like to take out single-appliance insurance. There is specific Rangemaster cooker insurance cover available, for example.

This will be more tailored to the particular model, and insurance providers often work with dedicated engineers who know all of the ins-and-outs of these expensive appliances. They’re also more likely to have access to genuine replacement parts. The manufacturers offer extended warranties which go beyond their standard one-year protection which comes with all new purchases.