Your home may be one of the biggest assets you own but while most people insure their car, health and life, home insurance is often overlooked. A fire, flood, earthquake, storm, riot or any other unexpected event can cause substantial financial damage, not only to the building, but also to furniture, electronics and other household belongings.

This is where Bharat Griha Raksha becomes relevant. This is a standard home insurance product introduced under the regulatory framework of IRDAI, designed to provide protection for residential buildings and household contents. Insurers offer the standard product, but the exact policy wording, UIN number, and available optional covers should always be checked before purchase.

What Does Bharat Griha Raksha Cover?
This policy covers broadly two things,

1) Home Building
This refers to the physical structure of your residence, including applicable fittings and fixtures. Depending on the policy wordings, the insured building may include components such as

· Walls, Floors and Roof
· Doors and windows
· Electrical and plumbing installations
· Sanitary Fittings
· Certain additional structure
· Compound walls, gates and other specific structures

The important point is that the sum insured should be based on the cost of rebuilding the structure, and not the market value of the property or the land.

2) Home Contents
This covers household articles used for personal purpose, such as
· Furniture
· Electronic Equipment
· Kitchen Equipment
· Other household items

Valuable items such as jewellery, silverware, paintings, antiques and works of art generally require separate declaration / optional cover, subject to policy terms.

Important Feature – Build-In Content Cover
If you purchase both Home Building + Home Content Cover, the standard structure provides an in-built general contents cover linked to the building sum insured, subject to applicable terms and conditions.

For example, the policy document may illustrate a situation where,
· Home Building Sum Insured = Rs 20 Lakh
· 20% of 20 Lakh = Rs 4 Lakh

Therefore, the in-built general content sum insured would be capped at Rs 4 Lahk, subject to the policy’s applicable limits. So, don’t simply assume,

“My house is insured, therefore everything inside my house is fully insured.” The amount of contents protection and whether additional cover is required should be checked carefully.

What About Jewellery & Other Valuable Items?
This is where many homeowners need to pay particular attention. Jewellery, painting, antiques, silverware and similar valuables may not automatically receive the same treatment as ordinary household contents.

An optional valuable contents add-on can be available on an agreed-value basis, subject to valuation and policy conditions. The policy document also provides specific thresholds where valuation requirements may be waiver, subject to the applicable terms.

Therefore, if your home contains Rs 10 Lakh of jewellery, do not assume that the standard contents automatically cover and protect this entire amount. Check the policy schedule, check the item limits. Check the valuation requirements.

What Happens If Your Home is Damaged?
Bharat Griha Raksha also has some useful in-built benefits. Depending on the applicable policy wordings, these can include,

· Architect / surveyor / consulting engineer fees, subject to specified limits
· Debris removal expense, subject to specified limit
· Loss of Rent
· Rent for alternative accommodation when the insured home becomes unfit for living because of an insured event.

For example, the policy document provides for architect, surveyor and consulting engineer fees up to 5% of the claim amount and debris removal costs up to 2%, subject to the policy conditions. These benefits can become extremely important when a major property claim occurs.

A Useful Note – No Underinsurance
One of the interesting features of the standard Bharat Griha Raksha policy wording is the treatment of underinsurance. For example, suppose the actual reconstruction value of your home is Rs 15 Lakh, but due to an incorrect declaration, the building is insured for Rs 13.5 Lakh.

If an insured loss requires Rs 5 Lakh of repairs, the policy example states that the claim can still be paid for Rs 5 Lakh, rather than applying a proportional underinsurance deduction, whereas, proportional deductions are applicable by some insurers on underinsurance.

This is an important difference that consumers should understand. Always ask about underinsurance clause. Even if you receive similar benefit, this does not mean you should deliberately select an inadequate sum insured. Your declared carpet area and construction cost should still be accurate.

What Does it Not Mean?
Home insurance does not mean that every possible loss inside your house is automatically payable. Coverage depends on,

· The insured event
· Policy exclusions
· Sum Insured
· Item Specific Limits
· Policy conditions
· Optional covers / addons selected
· Whether the loss falls within the definition of an insured event

For example, valuable contents may require additional cover, while certain items such as vehicles and some specified valuables may be excluded from standard contents coverage.

The policy wording is more important than the sales presentation.

Who Should Consider Bharat Griha Raksha Plan?
This policy can be relevant to

· Home Owners, to protect the building and household contents.
· Apartment Owners, to protect the individual residential unit and eligible contents.
· Landlords, to consider building protection, while the tenant may separately insure their contents.
· Family, to protect household belongings accumulated over years
· Home loan borrowers, but bundling of home insurance is not allowed for banks.

5 Things You Should Check Before Buying
Before purchasing any home insurance policy, do not look only at the premium amount. Check on

1) Rebuilding Cost – Calculate the cost of reconstruction, not the market selling price of the property.

2) Contents Value – Make an appropriate inventory of your furniture, electronics, appliances and other household items.

3) Valuable Items – If you own jewellery, artwork, antiques or expensive valuables, check whether separate declaration and cover are required.

4) Exclusions & Limits – Read the policy wordings for exclusions, item limits, deductibles and other important conditions. The General insurance company will clarify your doubts, queries on email.

5) Claim Support – Understand how the insurer handles claims and what list of bills, proof of ownership, list of documents you would need to submit.

The Final Take
Bharat Griha Raksha is not a “Insurance for a House.” It is a structured way of protecting the building, household contents and certain additional financial consequences of an insured event. The most important lesson is,

“Do not buy home insurance based only on the premium amount. Understand what you own, what is costs to rebuild or replace, what is automatically covered, and what needs additional protection.”

A relatively small insurance premium can protect an asset that may represent decades of your family’s savings. Insurance awareness is not about buying more insurance. It is about understanding what you already have, and identify what is missing.

INSURANCE AWARENESS > INSURANCE IGNORANCE
Helping individuals and families make informed insurance decisions through education, transparency, and awareness.

Last Updated – 13/09/2026
Author Name - Abhishek Borkar

Disclaimer
This article is intended solely for educational and awareness purposes and should not be considered financial, legal, tax, investment, or insurance advice.

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Cover images and illustrations may be generated using Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools for educational and illustrative purposes.