Home insurance doesn't use many special words – they're just rarely explained. This glossary lists the full basic vocabulary alphabetically: every term gets one plain-English sentence, and where a deeper guide exists in our knowledge base, a link follows. It's worth keeping open while you read a quote or a policy wording – it turns most of the small print into everyday English.
In short:
- 34 terms in alphabetical order, one plain sentence each – a quick aid for reading quotes and policy wordings.
- A longer primer on the 15 most important terms lives in its own article: the basics in minutes.
- For an English-language policy, or for an owner living abroad: the EN–HU mini-dictionary.
A–E
- Assistance: fast help arranged by the insurer in an emergency – typically a call-out tradesperson to fix the immediate problem: what it covers.
- Burglary: theft committed in the way the policy wording defines it – typically by forcible entry: the detail.
- Claims inspection (site visit): the insurer's on-site assessment of the damage – it's typically worth waiting for this before final repairs: loss adjustment and settlement.
- Claims line: the insurer's phone and online channel for reporting a loss – at a claim, this is always the primary route: how reporting works.
- Contents: everything that isn't built in – furniture, appliances, clothes, books: the two pillars.
- Cover: the range of losses and services the policy responds to, up to the stated sum insured.
- Deductible (excess): the part of a claim you carry yourself – in exchange, the premium is typically lower: the logic of the deductible.
- Depreciation (wear and tear): the fall in value from age and use, which can reduce the payout under some settlement methods.
- Exclusion: situations listed in the policy wording that cover does not extend to: the exclusions map.
F–M
- Glass breakage: cover for breakage of fitted glazing, with its own rules: the detail.
- Home inventory: a room-by-room list of your contents – the basis for a realistic sum insured and an orderly claim: the template.
- Indexation: the annual value-tracking that adjusts sums insured in line with price changes at renewal: accept it or not.
- Insured event: the loss defined in the policy wording that triggers a payout – the wording's definition decides, not everyday language.
- Limit: an internal payout cap for a particular type of loss or group of items, sitting inside the overall sum insured: where it matters most.
- Loss mitigation: your duty to stop a loss growing worse within reasonable limits – for example shutting off the stopcock after a leak.
- March switching window: a chance to cancel and switch home insurance independent of the policy anniversary, typically in March, under the rules in force at the time: the detail.
- MFO: the Certified Consumer-Friendly Home Insurance rating from the National Bank of Hungary – a standard that makes comparison easier: what it means and what it doesn't.
- Mortgagee: the lending bank in whose favour the clause is registered – for the detail, the loan agreement governs: switching with a mortgage.
- Mortgagee clause: an entry on the policy in favour of the bank on a mortgage – on a larger payout, the bank may also have a role: insurance alongside a mortgage.
N–R
- Natural peril: the umbrella term for basic natural risks – fire, lightning, storm, hail, snow load and others: the full list.
- Overinsurance: the sum insured sits above the true value – you pay premium on the excess, yet it is never paid out at a claim: why it's best avoided.
- Personal liability cover: if you or a family member causes loss to someone else – typically the downstairs neighbour getting a leak – this cover responds: the detail.
- Policyholder: the person who signs the contract, pays the premium and can make legal declarations on it: who is who.
- Proportional settlement (pro rata): under underinsurance, the insurer pays a claim only in the same proportion that the sum insured bears to the true value.
- Rebuilding value: the amount it would take to rebuild the property today – the right basis for the buildings sum insured: why not market price.
- Renewal (policy anniversary): the contract's yearly anniversary date – the natural point for indexation and for ordinary cancellation: switching at renewal.
- Robbery: taking property by force or threat against a person – treated as a separate insured event from burglary.
S–Z
- Start of cover (inception of risk): the period during which the insurer is on risk – its start date is one of the most important dates at signing: when cover starts.
- Storm: wind reaching the strength defined in the policy wording – the definition decides what counts as a storm: storm and hail damage.
- Sum insured: the ceiling up to which the insurer pays out for a given group of assets.
- Underinsurance: the sum insured sits below the true value – as a result, a claim can trigger proportional settlement: how it works.
- Vandalism: deliberate damage to property – cover for it depends on the policy wording, typically as a rider or alongside specific insured events.
- Waiting period: the period after signing during which certain covers are still limited – typically for special risks: where it applies.
- Water damage (from pipes): damage from a break or crack in pipework and fittings – the most common type of claim in Hungarian homes: the detail.
Found a missing term? Let us know – this glossary is a living document that grows from readers' questions. And if a term in your own policy is unclear, let's look at it together: book a free 20-minute consultation.
A question about your own home? Run the numbers in minutes with the online calculator (in Hungarian), or book a free 20-minute consultation →
This article is for information purposes only; it contains general information and does not constitute an offer or insurance advice. The exact content of insurance contracts is defined by the insurers' terms and conditions in force.
