A ‘Wine’ About Home Insurance

  Wine collecting was once seen as an 'upper-class' province, but in the
  past few years it has seen a surge in popularity and is now a past-time
  enjoyed by many. The number of wine merchants selling affordable wines
  has increased and now virtually anyone with a little space and a passion
  for wine can partake of this interesting hobby.

  Wine is a very versatile liquid, and a wine collection is useful in many ways,
  aside from the obvious; having a regular stock of tasty wine on hand for
  special occasions or just when you've had a long day at the office. Some
  wines, such as a bold red Merlot, are great for cooking with as well as
  drinking, and can be used in much the same way as herbs and spices to
  add flavour to a dish. If using a wine as a cooking ingredient, you're best
  using a good quality wine that you would also drink, not a cheap 'cooking'
  wine.

Wine is also an investment, and as it rarely keeps longer than 50 years, it isn't subject to capital gains tax. Buying wines when they are released young, and keeping them until they mature and become more expensive to buy, has proven to be lucrative if you choose and store your wines carefully. You don't need a lot of space, just somewhere cool, dry and in an area unlikely to be disturbed by the comings and goings of the household. Reds will keep longer than rosés and whites, and the type of cork used can make a great difference to the flavour as the wine matures.

If you plan to store potentially valuable wines for some time, you will need to inform your home insurance company. Wine is considered an asset and, while not so much of an obvious burglary target as a fancy stereo or laptop, could still fetch a good price if it were stolen. Consequently, having a wine collection may affect your home insurance premiums, and could invalidate a claim if you don't inform your insurer of it.

You may find your current level of home insurance won't cover your burgeoning wine collection. If that's the case, you may be able to get a separate policy to insure your bottles. Be sure to inform your provider if you add to your collection, and have regular valuations done to make sure you have the correct level of cover.

Having insurance for bottles of wine might not seem like a priority at first, but if you consider all that could go wrong; labels being damaged, bottles breaking or wine being corked, to name a few examples; it's worth paying that little extra to make sure your valuable collection remains a sound investment for many years.

Louise Tillotson is part of the insurance team for moneysupermarket.com, and has written several guides on home and contents insurance.