Thread: Home security and insurance policies

Hi All

Just got back from holiday and we discovered we have been burgled. They took almost everything and even took our two cars including my husband’s brand new Jaguar. I never been burgled before in my life be it in Bali, USA or UK hence this is a shock for me. My husband on the other hand has experienced a burglary before when a teenager, therefore he was not nearly as shocked as I was.

Certain things can be replaced and some of them can’t. However what upset me the most is people come to my house and go through my personal stuff. I feel my privacy has been violated.

Call me naïve but I thought that this type of thing would not happen to us as we live in a safe neighbourhood in the UK and would never think in a million years I could be burgled in Bali as our house is in safe area and I have known the locals since I was a kid. Well it happened to us in the UK and we are taking home security very seriously. I would hate to go through that felling again.

As you all know we are planning to move to Bali as soon as we can and would very much like to know what peoples thoughts are with regard to:

1) What type of security measures you have in your house in Bali

I have a few ideas as I lived in Bali before but would very much to hear from others.


2) Home content and car insurances

What type of policies do you have? Anyone had experiences claiming on their policies in Bali?

Thank you

Ni Luh

Ni Luh, yikes! That’s a terrible story. Thank the Gods that neither you or Jabber was home when your home was invaded, and thusly confronted by what all too often can be a very dangerous event.

I agree, having been robbed once when I lived in Boston, that it’s the heartless intrusion into your life that is most bothersome about this kind of thing. Insurance can pay for the monetary loss, but it can’t fix that horrible feeling in the gut.

In Bali, we do not carry homeowner’s insurance. Personally I believe our greatest risk would be from an earthquake. There’s not much to burn in our house, (90% stone), and as for theft, since we are living in the heart of our village...that risk is also extremely minimal.

I know several expats who have been robbed, and one (an artist) who was killed as he confronted the burglars at his house near the Maya in Ubud. In all the cases that I am aware of, those expats lived on the fringe, and in rather remote areas not otherwise populated either by the Balinese, or other expats. This desire for extreme privacy is understandable, but it brings on certain security concerns.

I’ve priced all risk homeowner’s insurance here in the past, and it is surprisingly affordable. However, having been an actuarial underwriter for the Prudential (US, not GB), for some thirteen years, I look at insurance and risk management from my own perspective. For me, insurance is most needed for the catastrophic events that cause a complete financial breakdown of the family unit. With that in mind, life insurance and medical insurance are top necessities on “my list” of vital insurance. In any event, all insurance decisions are a gamble, and those decisions have to be made based on one’s own personal situation.

Again Ni Luh, sorry to hear the bad news and I hope your recovery, both financial and mental, is quick to come for you both.

Welcome back from your holiday Ni Luh. :D

Sorry to hear about the robbery. :evil: I am lucky as I have not had to experience that in 50 odd years.

It does put a different perspective on things.