How much is your wardrobe worth?

Women estimate their wardrobe clothes, shoes and bags are worth £1,840 and men value their items at £1,470 but what is the true value of the contents of a wardrobe? And what’s the impact on a home insurance claim if you undervalue your contents?

According to research by LV=, many of us are seriously underestimating the value of our clothes, shoes and bags.

The research shows that the true average value of a wardrobe is much higher than most people think -

• for women it’s around £7,000
• for men it’s around £5,000

The worry is that by undervaluing the wardrobe contents, how would people replace the items should the property be hit by a flood or fire?

Clearly many buy home insurance for just such a situation but to ensure cover, home contents insurance must be in place and accurately calculated.

As Emma Holyer of LV= home insurance comments ‘Although it’s a relatively small percentage of claims where we see an entire wardrobe’s contents destoyed if you are underinsured you could find that your insurer will reduce the amount they pay out to reflect the cover taken out.’

Get home insurance from such as LV= or to compare home insurance from a number of providers get quotes from a comparison service such as that offered by Gocompare.com, Confused.com or Comparethemarket.com.

Not only do you need to make sure you have the right amount of contents insurance cover, you also need to make sure you have personal possessions insurance to cover the possessions that you regularly take out, including bags, iPods and laptops.

They too need protecting against theft, damage or loss.