You often hear people complain about their premiums. Yet they have only themselves to blame as they have not fully researched their cheap home insurance options. It is a legal requirement that you have property and liability insurance but that does not mean you have to bankrupt yourself paying extra for it.

So what are you protected against? The property element of the policy will provide protection against risk including fire, lighting and other adverse weather conditions, theft, vandalism etc. The liability cover protects you if someone takes an action against you for injury they sustained in your home. They may have fallen or walked into a glass door etc. Each state has its own laws so the policy terms and conditions will be dependent on the area that the property is located in.

The other factor that affects how much insurance you need is the size of your mortgage. If you buy a house worth $600,000 but only have a mortgage of $350,000, the second amount is all your lender will insist you insure the property for. If your home was destroyed, this is the amount of loss the financial institution would suffer.

As you pay down your mortgage you could reduce the amount of your cover. But this may not be the wise thing to do. After all, if your house was completely destroyed, it is not only the bank that will face a loss. You will too. How could you afford to rebuild your beautiful home if you do not put some protection in place? Your personal financial situation will dictate the amount of cover you need.

So how can you reduce the cost of your cover?

1) Work out how much you could afford to pay in the event of a claim and use this as your deductible. The higher this figure the lower your cover will cost. Just be aware that you will have to meet this excess on every claim so if you have a bad year, you could find yourself running out of funds.

2) Elect to pay your bill on an annual basis rather than monthly or bi-annually. Insurance companies often add interest charges to the cost of cover if you arrange to pay it in installments.

3) Be careful how often you claim. You will hear of people who put through every allowable charge under the policy. They mistakenly believe that the company is paying the costs, whereas they are. How? Their annual premiums will go up every year as a result of making claims. It is much more cost effective to meet the cost of smaller accidents or problems from your own pocket and leave the insurance to cover the big catastrophe costs.

4) If you fit an alarm and special locks on your windows and doors, you will often find the company offers a discount.

Always get two or three different quotations as the prices can vary considerably. Don't automatically renew your policy every year. Always try to find cheap house insurance- you can ask your current provider to match any lower premium you discover.