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Connected home: what actually helps if you're away half the year
Plenty of homes here stand empty half the year. For those, home automation isn't a gadget: it's the difference between hearing about a leak the same day and finding the floor lifted in March.
What pays off most and almost nobody fits
It isn't the camera, it's the water sensor. A detector under the boiler or the dishwasher costs little and alerts your phone as soon as there's moisture. Most of the large home claims we see started as a small leak nobody noticed for weeks. The same goes for a motorised stopcock that shuts the water off by itself.
Cameras: mind where they point
A camera inside your own home is your business. A camera covering the landing, the communal pool or the neighbour's terrace is not: data protection rules apply there, and it has caused more than one dispute. Point it at your own property and you'll save yourself the argument at the next owners' meeting.
The alarm and what your policy says
A monitored alarm can affect the terms of your home insurance — sometimes the premium, sometimes the theft cover. The order matters: you tell us first, then we record it. A security measure the insurer doesn't know about counts for nothing when it matters.
And one thing no device covers
Home automation alerts you, it doesn't repair. If you're away for half the year you need, besides sensors, someone who can get in: a neighbour, the administrador, whoever. We can file the claim and send the loss adjuster — but nobody can open the door for him from Germany.
What this means for you
- Water sensor under boiler, washing machine and dishwasher: the cheapest thing that prevents the most expensive one.
- If you're away for long stretches, consider a motorised stopcock.
- Point cameras at your own property only; landings and communal areas have their own rules.
- Fitting a monitored alarm? Tell us BEFORE — it can change your terms.
- Leave someone you trust who can get in while you're away.
- If you don't know what theft cover you have, ask us and we'll check.
Source: Allianz España · Blog Seguros Hogar (öffnet in einem neuen Fenster) · 23 September 2026
Information without obligation. The policy and the Allianz information sheets are binding.