Are your solar panels also covered by your home insurance?
Solar panels are becoming increasingly popular as a way to make your home a little more eco-friendly or reduce your energy bills. But are your solar panels also covered by your home insurance? Not necessarily! Read on to find out when you should contact your Insurance Expert.
How much of a fire risk do solar panels pose?
The chances are slim, but solar panels can catch fire. This is because they generate electricity. A defective or poor connection can cause sparks to escape, potentially leading to a fire if they spread to flammable material.
This means that good workmanship and proper materials are the key to ensuring your installation is as fire-safe as possible, because not all types and brands of solar panel are equally fire-resistant. That’s why it’s best to ask about fire safety when contacting a potential installer. Your installer should know the fire rating (A, B or C) of their solar panels and whether they’ve been certified as Broof t1 or Froof t1. The most fire-safe solar panels have fire rating A and Broof t1 certification.
Are your solar panels, charge point and home battery automatically insured under your home insurance?
%%product.brandverzekering%% automatically covers your solar panels, your charge point and your home battery (see your policy for full details). This means that you don’t need to report the installation of solar panels, a charge point or a home battery to your insurance agent. As standard, solar panels are included in your home insurance at KBC (see your policy for full details).
Add-on cover for your solar panels
Hard as it may be to believe, solar panels can also be stolen. You can protect yourself from the financial consequences of theft or attempted theft by taking out additional theft cover with your home insurance.
Various installers also charge extra for additional insurance, but if the same cover is already included in your home insurance, you don’t need it. You should therefore make sure to carefully compare the cover offered by both insurance products and decide for yourself whether you think this additional insurance is necessary.
Want to find out what exactly is covered by home insurance at KBC and what add-ons you can choose?
Most insurers cover solar panels in their home insurance products as standard. If your insurer belongs to that group, you don't usually have to pay anything extra to insure your solar panels. If it isn’t, you should make sure to let your insurer know about your solar panels as soon as you’ve installed them. They can then check whether the insured value of your home has increased and if you have to pay more for your insurance.
If your solar panels have been given fire rating C, they meet the minimum requirements for fire safety. Most solar panels have fire rating C, meaning they have passed minor fire testing.
The second level of fire testing gives your solar panels fire rating B. These panels have passed average fire testing.
Solar panels that meet the most stringent requirements are given fire rating A. These panels have passed severe fire testing.
If your solar panels are included in your home insurance, they get the same cover as the rest of your house. Damage caused by storms, hail, fire, or lightning strikes, for example, is covered.
Examples of damage covered by %%product.brandverzekering%% include damage caused by fire, storms, water and collision. Examples of damage not covered by %%product.brandverzekering%% include loss, intentional damage, and flooding. More information on %%product.brandverzekering%% can be found in the information documents for owners, tenants and landlords or at the bottom of this page.
Solar panels can be tested to two standards, namely IEC61730-2 and EN13501-5. These measure fire resistance with a flame spread test and a fire test. Following the flame spread test, the solar panel is given a fire rating of A, B or C (A being the most fire-resistant). After the fire test, the solar panel is certified as Broof t1 (passed) or Froof t1 (failed).
KBC Home Insurance
Owner
Be sure to read this information document before taking out home insurance.
Other important documents are:
General conditions applying to KBC Home Insurance for owners
Tenant
Be sure to read this information document before taking out home insurance.
Other important documents are:
General conditions applying to KBC Home Insurance for tenants
Landlord
Be sure to read this information document before taking out home insurance.
Other important documents are:
General conditions applying to KBC Home Insurance for landlords
Thing you should know about KBC Home Insurance
KBC Home Insurance is a property insurance policy.
- This product is governed by the laws of Belgium.
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- Your intermediary is the first point of contact for any complaints you may have. If no agreement can be reached, or if you have taken out this insurance online, please contact KBC Complaints Management, Brusselsesteenweg 100, 3000 Leuven, complaints@kbc.be, tel. 016 43 25 94. If you cannot find a suitable solution, you can contact the Belgian insurance industry's ombudsman service: Ombudsman van de Verzekeringen, de Meeûssquare 35, 1000 Brussels, info@ombudsman-insurance.be, www.ombudsman-insurance.be. This does not affect your legal rights.
- You are covered for the risks listed in the General Conditions. Some examples: damage caused by fire, storm, water, collision, explosion and natural disasters. Not covered: loss, intentional damage, damage due to rising groundwater, etc. The full list of exclusions can be found in the General conditions applying to owners, tenants and landlords.
Visit our website or contact your Insurance Expert to request a quote for KBC Home Insurance.
KBC Home Insurance is a product provided by KBC Insurance NV – Professor Roger Van Overstraetenplein 2 – 3000 Leuven – Belgium.
VAT BE 0403.552.563 – RLP Leuven – IBAN BE43 7300 0420 0601 – BIC KREDBEBB
Company licensed by the National Bank of Belgium, de Berlaimontlaan 14, 1000 Brussels, Belgium, for all classes of insurance under code 0014 (Royal Decree of 4 July 1979, Belgian Official Gazette of 14 July 1979).
Member of the KBC Group
