Your home insurance policy is worthless if it won?t pay out when you need to claim. Here?s how to make sure that you?re not caught out. Your home insurance should be like a vital financial safety net, protecting you against minor issues like damaged floors and broken windows, as well as domestic disasters like a fire, flood or burglary. Any policy that promises the earth but fails to deliver simply isn't worth the paper it's written on. So you need to make sure that the policy you pay for is up to the challenge. Here's how to make sure your home insurance will cover everything you need it to and pay out if you need to make a claim: The smart way to search for home insurance: 1. Beware fussy insurers Home insurance providers are fussy about the type of properties they'll cover and rather than assuming that your home will meet their criteria you need to be certain. Here's what to check; Number of bedrooms: Most home insurance companies cap the number of bedrooms they'll cover on their standard policies. Anything over 5 bedrooms can be classed as requiring specialist cover so if your home falls into this category make sure you double check each policy before you apply. Property age: If you home is over a certain age it may not be accepted by standard home insurance policies, worse still if you get your dates wrong you could accidentally invalidate your insurance poilcy! So make sure you find