QUINN Direct has come tops once again in the latest survey of house insurance costs by the Financial Regulator.

The Cavan-based insurer offered the cheapest policies in four of the six profiles of typical householders from all over the country. And it is placed second and third in the remaining two.

Quinn featured equally strongly as the cheapest car insurer in a similar survey a few weeks ago.

The survey reveals that householders can save up to Euro320 on the annual cost of home insurance.

The biggest saving in the survey is for a 130-year-old, three-bedroom Victorian terraced house in Dublin 8 .

Quotes on the property range between Euro520 (Quinn) and Euro838 (Eagle Star).

Across the six profiles in the survey, Royal & Sun Alliance came a distant second to Quinn. It is among the cheapest three insurers in four of the six categories, which is a boost for the beleaguered broker market as it quotes only through intermediaries.

Eagle Star, Allianz and Axa managed two top three finishes each while Hibernian and FBD trailed with one apiece. But with just seven insurers in the market, they hardly deserve much fanfare.

However, price is not the only factor that people should take into account.

"Consumers should also be aware that there may be conditions attached to their home insurance cover, " said the Regulator's consumer director, Mary O'Dea. She pointed out that some of the more expensive quotes include useful features.

Quotes here from FBD and Allianz automatically include accidental damage to the contents of your home, while Eagle Star offers it for both buildings and contents. These are useful extra features that would partly - but arguably not completely - justify the price difference with Quinn Direct.

"Always look carefully at any conditions attached to insurance cover. For example, our survey shows that a condition attached to one quote was that flood cover would be excluded, " said O'Dea.

The profile in question is that of a householder with a five-bedroom bungalow in Roscommon who made a claim for flood damage six years ago.

The quotes given highlight the plight of householders in flood-prone areas where a significant extra premium is levied to account for this risk.

Two insurers, Allianz and Axa, would not quote at all for the flood victim, while four of the remaining five attached conditions.

The insurer that did quote - but excluded flood cover - was Eagle Star, which was nonetheless ready to charge a hefty Euro477.

Hibernian came up with a whopping Euro662 quote "subject to an investigation into the extent of flood exposure".

FBD and Royal & Sun Alliance had a minor quibble and "assumed that previous flood claims have been investigated and remedial works completed", which seemed fair enough.

And FBD's quote of Euro399 was also the second-cheapest, possibly because of its experience in dealing with the farming community.

But the only one without any stipulations at all was Quinn, which was also by far the cheapest of the lot.

Its quote of Euro320 comes in at almost half what Hibernian was grudgingly prepared to offer.

With Quinn and FBD taken out of the equation, this flood victim would have to pay Euro520plus for full cover. This compares with the Euro258 premium offered on a similarly valued four-bedroom detached home in County Clare (profile 5).

"Premiums for homes on a flood plain do get loaded, " said Andrew Collins, managing director of online broker 123. ie.

"With break-ins dramatically reduced because of technology and other factors, water damage is the main concern for insurers - either from floods for burst pipes or tanks.

Overall, though, premiums have come down. They are as low as they have been in the past six or seven years."

Collins welcomed the survey for highlighting the costs to be saved by shopping around (although the survey excluded 123. ie's own-brand home insurance package because his company operates as a broker and not a fully-fledged insurer. ) He said consumers are complacent, taking the cover their bank flogs them when buying their home and then never bothering to change.

"People are being ripped off by banks, who get their commission for selling the product, and then mark it up as well, " he warned.

However, he added that price isn't everything.

"Watch out for things that aren't covered - all-risks cover* that doesn't apply when you are on holidays, for example."

Collins claimed that a survey carried out by 123. ie had shown that its own-brand policy was the cheapest on the market. (And it certainly gets a good rating from the acerbic critics who contribute to askaboutmoney. com. See several comments in the insurance section. ) He said he would prove this later this month when 123. ie launches a price promise paying Euro50 to any customers who can find a cheaper quote.

Copies of the Financial Regulator's Home Insurance Cost Survey and guide entitled 'Home Insurance Made Easy' are available by phoning the consumer help-line at 1890 777777, by visiting www. itsyourmoney. ie, or by calling at the Consumer Information Centre at College Green, Dublin 2.

* 'All risks' covers you against loss, theft or accidental damage to certain items outside the home as well as inside. You will pay a higher premium for this.

THE BEST PRICES PROFILE THREE CHEAPEST QUOTES FIVE-BED BUNGALOW IN ROSCOMMON* QUINN DIRECT Euro352 REBUILD: Euro271,000 FBD Euro399 CONTENTS: Euro55,000
EAGLE STAR Euro477 FOUR-BED DETACHED HOUSE IN MEATH QUINN DIRECT Euro353 REBUILD: Euro253,000 RSA Euro378 CONTENTS: Euro55,000
EAGLE STAR Euro381 THREE-BED SEMI-DETACHED IN WATERFORD CITY AXA Euro182 REBUILD: Euro141,000 HIBERNIAN Euro188 CONTENTS: Euro35,000
QUINN DIRECT Euro189 THREE-BED VICTORIAN HOUSE IN DUBLIN 8 **
QUINN DIRECT Euro520 REBUILD: Euro550,000 RSA Euro549 CONTENTS: Euro75,000 FBD Euro607 FOUR-BED DETACHED HOUSE IN CLARE RSA Euro258 REBUILD: Euro245,000
QUINN DIRECT Euro285 CONTENTS: Euro55,000 ALLIANZ Euro301 3-BED SEMI-DETACHED IN DUBLIN 7***
QUINN DIRECT Euro252 REBUILD: Euro229,000 RSA Euro378 CONTENTS: Euro25,000 AXA Euro391 *Flooding claim in 2001 ** With preservation order *** Buy-to-let property For full details of this survey visit www. financialregulator. ie The 'Money Talks' table will return next week