Reviewed by Hugo Gonçalves, Founder & Risk Management Specialist at Adler & Rochefort · Degree in Business Management (University of Hertfordshire) · Ongoing training at the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), London.
A household with a main residence, a second home, a collection, a car or two and a family to protect rarely has one insurance question — it has several, usually bought at different times, from different insurers, without anyone looking at how they fit together. A contents section that caps any single item at a few thousand euros, a buildings sum insured that has drifted below rebuild cost, a motor policy that settles on a depreciated market value, a liability limit nobody has checked in years — each is a small gap on its own. Together, across a household with several residences or assets in more than one country, they are the pattern this page exists to review.
Where the risk genuinely needs it — a valuable collection, a non-standard property, a car worth more than a price guide shows — the answer is individually underwritten cover: an underwriter looks at the specific risk, agrees a value in advance, and writes the conditions into the contract before anything happens. Where it does not, a properly built retail policy does the job for less, and we say so. This page sets out how the review works, what underwriting requires, and where Portugal's geography changes the picture.
Households that also live in Spain are handled by the same adviser, to the same standard — and, where the insurer writes both locations, on the same policy. See private client cover in Spain.
Art, jewellery and watches: who insures them and on what terms →
More answers: private client insurance, questions answered →
The Adler & Rochefort Private Office: who we are and how we work →
Not every household needs every item on this list, and we do not assume otherwise. A coordinated review looks at which of these actually apply, and how they interact:
The point of reviewing these together, rather than policy by policy, is straightforward: a gap in one usually shows up as a gap in another, and nobody notices until a claim.
The single-article limit. A Portuguese multirriscos policy insures contents to a total sum, then caps what it will pay for any one item within that total. The cap is typically a few thousand euros, or a stated percentage of the contents sum with a per-item ceiling on top. A watch worth €60,000 inside a €180,000 contents figure is not insured for €60,000; it is insured for whatever the single-article limit says, and the rest of the contents sum is irrelevant to it.
The proportional rule. Where the sum insured is below the true value at risk, Portuguese wordings reduce every settlement in the same proportion, including partial ones. Declare €700,000 on a building that costs €1,100,000 to rebuild, suffer a €120,000 fire, and the arithmetic produces roughly €76,000. Above a certain rebuild value this stops being a technicality and starts being the whole outcome of a claim, because construction costs move and a sum insured set at purchase drifts every year it is not revisited.
Settlement on depreciated market value. A standard motor policy pays what the vehicle was worth on the day of the loss, calculated from a trade table. For a car that has appreciated — a restored example, a limited series, a car with more spent on it than a price guide will ever show — that figure is not the car. The same logic applies to a painting settled at what a comparable one fetched, or a piece of jewellery settled at scrap and stone value rather than what it would cost to have it made again.
Rebuild value rather than market price, all-risks rather than named perils, and gardens, walls, pools and outbuildings written into the schedule instead of capped at a token figure.
Read the guideScheduled works on agreed values, restoration cost and loss in value after partial damage, cover in transit and on loan, and inventories for collections with no catalogue price.
Read the guideItems listed individually rather than sharing one generic limit, safe rating and alarm grade agreed in advance, and worldwide cover for pieces that are worn rather than stored.
Read the guideHull on an agreed value, third-party liability at the limit the marina requires, crew cover, navigation limits that match where the boat actually goes, and the lay-up period.
Read the guideAgreed value instead of a depreciated settlement, limited-use rating, marque repair networks, storage conditions, and a single schedule where there is more than one car.
Read the guidePossessions carried, worn, travelled with and left in hotel safes — worldwide all-risks on scheduled items, and the geographical limits that quietly apply to everything else.
Read the guideIndividually underwritten for each family member, which matters more, not less, when the household is based across more than one country.
Read the guidePersonal liability limits that are actually realistic for the household, and the cover that becomes compulsory once you employ domestic staff.
Read the guideSome risks sit outside even the best household wording. We arrange them through specialist markets and co-brokerage partners, in Portugal and in Spain, with the same written assessment and the same adviser.
D&O for the holding, trustee and protector liability, homes and yachts in one programme, fraud, cyber, K&R and succession — designed together.
Portugal & SpainCrisis-response consultants, ransom reimbursement, threats and cyber extortion — for the family, staff and guests, worldwide.
Portugal & SpainPayment-diversion fraud during a property purchase, cyber extortion, identity theft and online harassment.
Portugal & Spain| Off-the-shelf policy | Individually underwritten | |
|---|---|---|
| Basis of value | Market value at the date of loss, depreciated, decided by the insurer after the event | Agreed value fixed at inception against a valuation, paid without a depreciation argument |
| Single-article limit | A fixed cap per item, typically a few thousand euros, applied whatever the item is worth | Scheduled items carry their own sums insured; unscheduled contents keep a separate, higher blanket limit |
| Proportional rule | Applied in full to partial and total claims alike | Frequently waived outright, or applied only beyond a stated tolerance — confirmed in writing before placing |
| Geographical scope | The insured address, with a small, time-capped extension for possessions temporarily away | Worldwide cover available on scheduled items, including in transit, on loan and in third-party storage |
| Repair and restoration | The insurer’s general network; parts and methods chosen for cost | Marque specialists, conservators and restorers, with restoration cost and any residual loss in value both addressed |
| Underwriting process | Rating table, instant quote, few questions asked and few answers checked | An underwriter reads the file: photographs, valuations, security, survey, claims history — days rather than minutes |
In a property of real value the right cover is a matter of analysis, not of choosing a product. We look at the house, the way it is used and what is inside it, and only then approach the insurers whose underwriting fits.
How the cost of rebuilding is established, whether the sums insured are sufficient and whether the policy limits the indemnity in any way — including how underinsurance and the proportional rule would apply.
Which natural and accidental perils are covered, on what terms, with which excesses, and what local exposure — coast, river, slope, seismic zone — means for acceptance.
Whether contents are insured at a realistic value, which items need to be scheduled, how they are kept and what limits apply per item and in total.
Walls, pools, annexes, garages, solar installations and outdoor equipment: what is part of the building sum and what needs to be declared separately.
Liability limits set against the real exposure — guests, domestic staff, contractors, management services — and the cover that each of them may need.
Historic or listed houses, unusual construction, properties owned through a company, and several homes in Portugal and Spain that should be insured coherently.
We assess the risk, analyse the conditions available and look for the protection that fits. All cover is subject to the insurer’s acceptance of the risk and to the terms of the policy issued.
Adler & Rochefort works with insurers and specialist partners in the protection of private wealth, including Hiscox, Chubb, Liberty Mutual, Hispania and Innovarisk. The choice of solution depends on the characteristics of the property, the sums insured, its use and the underwriting conditions available. All cover is subject to the insurer’s acceptance of the risk and to the terms of the policy.
Exposure grows with the household: guests, domestic staff, a pool, a second home, children studying abroad. A standard liability limit rarely keeps pace — and the difference is paid from personal wealth.
Family liability limits set to the household’s exposure, confirmed in writing.
Legal defence costs are covered; whether they sit inside or on top of the limit depends on the wording, and we confirm it in writing.
The household, including children studying away, and anyone looking after your pets occasionally; guests and domestic staff in connection with the residence.
As owner, tenant or occupier — in Portugal, in Spain, or wherever the family has a home.
What a review actually needs to look at changes with where the property is:
None of this changes what is legally required — it changes what a sensible review actually asks about.
No client names appear anywhere on this site or in any other channel. No photograph of an insured item is published, used in marketing, or shown to anyone other than the underwriters approached on your instructions. No private client is ever named or quoted; the only public reviews are those clients chose to post on Trustpilot themselves.
Everything runs in writing — email or WhatsApp — so there is a dated record of what was declared, what was asked and what was answered. That record is what a claim turns on. One person handles the file from the first enquiry through renewal and, if it comes to it, the claim; you do not restart with somebody new.
This is an operating method rather than a promise. It exists because information about what somebody owns, where it is kept and how it is protected is itself a risk, and the fewer places it sits the better.
None of this is a formality. An underwriter pricing a specific risk rather than a category needs to see it, and what you supply at inception is what the claim is later measured against.
Tell us what you own and where it is kept. We reply in writing, in English. As each proposal is specific and requires a detailed analysis of the risk, response times may vary. No call is required at any stage.
By sending this form you agree to us using your details to prepare and discuss the cover, in line with our privacy policy. We never sell your data, and we do not publish client names or photographs of insured items.
We will reply in writing. As each proposal is specific and requires a detailed analysis of the risk, response times may vary.
TrustScore 4.3/5 · 8 reviews · Trustpilot
Great for this US expat with ‘vacation’ property awaiting my relocation
I was drawn to Adler & Rochefort because they were comfortable with English communication … and worked with second/vacation home owners. It was reassuring that I was asked for specific information about the property and my needs, with follow-up, before a quote was obtained. … Coverage is a clear match for my needs.
Hugo provided excellent detailed and…
Hugo provided excellent detailed and thorough service in the transition from our old policy to a new and better policy that served our needs. We highly recommend him and Adler & Rochefort for their professionalism and attentiveness.
Amazing service - highly recommend
Amazing service. Hugo was hugely knowledgeable and gave us quotes incredibly fast. He was always at the end of the phone answering questions and was very diligent in getting the right insurance for us. Highly recommend.
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Reviews as published on Trustpilot (September 2026).
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