Rebuild value: the number that decides your claim
The sum insured on the building is not what you paid for the house, nor the bank’s valuation. It is the cost of building it again — and it decides how much you are paid after a loss.
High-value homes: Hiscox, Liberty and Chubb
For a main residence of real value, we place cover with Hiscox, Liberty Mutual and Chubb. All three settle on rebuild cost rather than a cadastral figure; they differ on minimum sums, on alarm conditions and on how far beyond the sum insured they will go.
Hiscox — home insurance for residents
For residents of Portugal or Spain, with contents from €150,000.
- All-risks extension, with art and antiques and valuables and personal possessions in their own sections; personal possessions covered worldwide.
- Rebuild cost, with flexibility by agreement up to the sum insured; alternative accommodation for up to two years; architects' and engineers' fees and demolition up to 15% on top of the sum insured.
- Liability of €7,500,000; no deductible on claims above €10,000, except earthquake, which carries its own excess of €7,500 or 2.5% of the buildings and contents sums insured, whichever is greater.
Watch: Theft cover can require an alarm connected to a monitoring centre (or to keyholders), installed within 30 days and serviced every year.
Liberty Mutual Home Insurance Plus, through Innovarisk
For a main residence or a house under permanent supervision, with contents from €150,000.
- All risks; the wording applies no proportional rule, which appears only in the compulsory fire cover of a flat in a condominium.
- Rebuild cost and, if rebuilding is not reasonable, an agreed amount up to the sum insured; alternative accommodation for up to two years; fees and demolition up to 15% on top.
- Contents replaced new for old; leak detection and repair up to €25,000.
- Liability of €7,500,000; a three-year Long Term Agreement on renewal terms; Portuguese law.
Watch: Alarm and safe conditions can be set as subjectivities, depending on the contents and valuables declared. Personal liability does not cover the USA or Canada for residents there, or after more than 90 days there in the year.
Chubb — Masterpiece Signature
For homes with a building sum insured from €1,000,000: house, contents, valuables, family liability and family protection in one policy.
- After a total loss, the rebuild is paid even above the sum insured, as long as the appraised sums have been kept.
- All risks of physical loss, with no exclusion tied to construction materials; outbuildings not attached to the house covered up to 20% of the house sum insured, at replacement cost.
- No sub-limits for accidental damage, theft from cellars or garden furniture, and replacement cost up to 25% above the contents sum insured; unlisted jewellery and watches are limited to €25,000 in total and €7,500 per piece, so pieces of value are listed. Contents and valuables covered worldwide.
- Alternative accommodation with no monetary limit while the house cannot be lived in; lock replacement and leak detection with no limit.
- Liability up to €10,000,000 worldwide, and family protection after events such as a violent home intrusion or a carjacking.
- €1,000 deductible, waived on claims above €10,000; cash settlement or repair by a provider you choose.
Watch: Acceptance can depend on security conditions set for each home, such as a safe certified to EN 1143-1, an alarm connected to a monitoring centre and smoke detectors. If the house stands empty for more than 30 days without notice to the insurer, the deductible rises to 5% of the sum insured.
What we need to quote
- Address, year of construction and gross area.
- Rebuild value: we calculate it with the APS SCRIM simulator and round it up for walls, pools and outbuildings.
- Contents and valuables to insure, and how they are kept.
- Alarm and security, and any claims in the last five years.
- The mortgage lender, if it has to be named on the policy.
Conditions summarised from each insurer's wording and the proposals we place; the policy issued and its schedule always prevail, and cover is subject to the insurer's acceptance.
What the rebuild value is
It is the cost of rebuilding the same building, on the same site, to an equivalent specification, at today’s prices. It includes:
- demolition and debris removal;
- design, permits and professional fees;
- construction to an equivalent finish;
- VAT.
It excludes the land, the location, the view and the market — none of that burns. So it is not the purchase price, the tax value (VPT) or the mortgage valuation.
Why it decides the claim: the proportional rule
Under a standard Portuguese multi-risk policy, if the building sum insured is below the rebuild value, the insurer applies the proportional rule (regra proporcional, the equivalent of average): it pays in the same proportion as the house is insured — on small claims too.
Example: rebuild value €800,000, sum insured €500,000 (62.5%). On a €40,000 loss, the settlement is €25,000.
The opposite mistake costs too: an excessive sum insured means paying premium for nothing, because under a standard policy the settlement never exceeds the actual loss.
Recalculate it with the SCRIM simulator
The Portuguese Insurers’ Association (APS) offers SCRIM, a free rebuild-cost simulator for properties in Portugal, built on a technical method developed by FUNDEC at Instituto Superior Técnico. You enter area, quality, location and features and get an estimate. The simulator is in Portuguese.
Open the APS SCRIM simulator →
- Use the gross construction area, not the usable floor area.
- Add what a simulator struggles to capture: boundary and retaining walls, pool, outbuildings, guest house, landscaping. That is why we always round up.
- The result is indicative. For higher-value homes, the insurer’s on-site survey sets the figure with you.
SCRIM does not apply to properties in Spain, where the mortgage valuation usually states an “insurance value” as the starting point.
Beyond the generalist insurers
We place products that go beyond the traditional multi-risk policies of Portugal’s generalist insurers, designed for high-value homes:
- On-site survey at no cost to set the rebuild value and the contents and valuables sums insured.
- No proportional rule once the recommended sums are accepted: a partial loss is paid in full.
- Above the rebuild value: after a total loss, by agreement between insurer and insured, the settlement can reach the maximum building sum insured, above the rebuild value.
- Walls, pools, outbuildings and gardens with their own sums insured, not reduced to a token amount.
Conditions depend on the insurer and the risk and are only confirmed in the wording of the policy issued.
Ask us to review the sum insured on your home
Tell us about the property and we’ll come back to you within 24 hours with a written comparison.
Ask for a quote — it takes under a minute
Leave just the essentials and we reply within 24 working hours. We ask for the rest by email.
What we will ask for your quote
After the first contact we ask for these details by email. If you have them to hand, you can send them now to insurance@adlerrochefort.com.
- Full name
- Full address of the property
- Portuguese tax number (NIF)
- Gross construction area
- Year of construction
- Main or second home
- Occupation
- Age
- Buildings sum insured
- Contents sum insured
- Valuables sum insured
By sending this form you agree to us using your details to prepare and discuss your quote, in line with our privacy policy. We never sell your data. Adler & Rochefort is a trading name of Ownizo, Unipessoal Lda., registered with the ASF under no. 425591790/3.
Thank you
Your request has been received. Our team will get back to you within 24 hours.
Frequently asked questions
Is the rebuild value the same as market value?
No. Market value includes the land, the location and demand; rebuild value is only the cost of reconstructing the building. The two can differ a lot, in either direction.
Do I have to use the SCRIM figure?
No. SCRIM is an indicative reference and the sum insured is your decision. But under a standard policy, a sum below the rebuild value triggers the proportional rule on every claim.
Can I be paid more than the rebuild value?
Not under a standard policy. Under the high-value products we place, after a total loss and by agreement between insurer and insured, the settlement can reach the maximum sum insured, above the rebuild value.
How often should I review the sum insured?
At least once a year and always after works. Automatic indexation follows inflation but does not fix a starting figure that was wrong.
Adler & Rochefort is a commercial brand of Ownizo, Unipessoal Lda., registered with the ASF under no. 425591790/3. General guidance only; conditions, premiums and cover vary by insurer and profile.