As Game Of Thrones returns for its last ever season, we’re estimating how much it would cost to insure properties featured in the hit series.
As the episodes unfold we will look at all of the key locations, we know that Winter is Coming so ahead of the first episode, we’re looking at Winterfell.
Since the first season aired way back in 2011, Game Of Thrones has become a sensation.
We have all watched on the edge of our seats as our favourite characters journey through the Seven Kingdoms and across the Narrow Sea.
We have all waited a year and a half for Season 8 and it is finally here.
After all the battles, sieges, invasions and just downright carnage, have you ever thought about how they handle the damage?
When Winterfell was burnt down at the end of Season 2, it was meant to have been ‘burnt to the ground’ but Roose Bolton managed to repair it sharpish when he seized the castle.
By the time of the battle with Stannis Baratheon all of the walls were fixed, the walls were reinforced and (from what we could see) all the rooms were usable. Pretty impressive for a castle in the middle of nowhere.
Harrenahal was torched by Aegon’s dragons 300 years ago, and still hasn’t recovered despite having the most profitable lands in the Kingdom!
If all this happened in the real world we would turn to our home insurance and let the insurer take care of the damage. As Adrian Flux insures castles, we thought let’s price up the main ones in Westeros.
Winterfell to cost £400,000 a year?
Winterfell has been a key location throughout all of the seasons, not only being home to the fan-favourite Stark family, but it has a huge strategic advantage to pretty much everyone.
Having changed hands several times, it has been raided, burnt, suffered through Winters and now faces yet another battle in the upcoming season.
Taking all of this into account and considering the castle is approximately 968,00 sq ft, the new Lord of Winterfell would need to foot a £400,000 a year premium. Not a policy for the faint hearted, but at least it covers the risk of frozen pipes!
With Winterfell apparently incorporating a coffee franchise, they can still give us a call. As well as their home insurance, we can cover the Starks for their business equipment and their work area in the event of a mishap. With the clean up after the Great War, they are going to need some serious caffeine!
The Red Keep – lower risk than Winterfell?!
The Red Keep houses the ever desirable Iron Throne and has had a Lannister presence even since the reign of Mad King Aerys. While they may rule the roost for now Cercei’s ambition could be the downfall of her and the remnants of her House.
Overlooking Blackwater Bay and the Narrow Sea, the castle towers over the city of King’s Landing – so there’s certainly no flood risk! However the fire risk is pretty high with wildfire stashed throughout the city, and so is the public liability risk when every monarch for four decades has murdered guests that displease them.
With the location being further from The Wall and army of the dead, it is currently a lower risk property than Winterfell despite the high crime rate in the area. The Lannisters would need to fork out a £380,000 a year premium to keep their castle covered. This would include £2m property owners liability, although it is unlikely that it would actually cover murder!
Pyke – Safe and sound on an island?
The Castle at Pyke is probably one of the safest places in Westeros at the moment. As Yara has now reclaimed the Iron Islands, at least anyone who survives the battle with the Night King will have somewhere to retreat to.
Once perched on top of the cliff, most of the rock has eroded away leaving the Castle and towers sat precariously on the remaining rock stacks with only swaying rope bridges connecting them. With the storms raging and the rough seas below it would be a daunting place to live, but the hardy Greyjoys seem to cope (except when Balon ‘slipped’).
Despite being a safe haven from the White Walkers, the high risk of further cliff erosion is a factor which is definitely taken into account for this quote. This insurance policy doesn’t charge any extra for the previous damage to the property, ideal for when the Greyjoys lost the rebellion they started. However, because of the location not being stable at all it comes with a hefty premium of £850,000 and the excess will be no small deal either. If it wasn’t likely to suffer from more subsidence or landslips it would have been eligible for a special Island policy price – but luck isn’t with the Greyjoy’s.
Dragonstone – The Original Seat of House Targaryen
Once the westernmost outreach of Old Valyria, Dragonstone castle was built with sorcery and dragon fire. It later became the original seat of House Targaryen and the base from which Aegon launched his conquest of Westeros.
The castle is secure on its island – the Valyrian methods have ensured that the walls stand the test of time and dramatic storms, like the one that saw Daenerys get her ‘Stormborn’ name. With dragons carved into the stone and guarding the walls as gargoyles, it must have been an unwelcoming home for the Baratheons but the perfect retreat for the Targaryens.
Now that the Northerners have mined all of their dragonglass from the island, we know that the castle sits above some disused mine shafts and an area of historical significance. This has caused a higher risk of subsidence despite the sturdy building techniques.
Although the castle is frequently empty (Stannis was hardly there at all when he still lived there), this policy accounts for that and allows up to 30 days of unoccupied coverage, as well as a special rate for being on an island.
Also when the real dragons are home they can get a discount as that definitely counts as good alarms and security. The Valryian input also slightly increases the premium as although it is sturdy, it would cost more to rebuild.
Sunspear – ‘Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken”
Now that there is a new Prince of Dorne, we are bound to catch a glimpse of Sunspear where House Martell used to hold power (before they were effectively wiped out a few seasons ago). Surrounded by the sea on three sides and with the desert at it’s back, it’s sand coloured winding walls distinguish it from all the other castles in Westeros.
Encompassed by Shadow Town, which doesn’t compare in size to cities such as King’s Landing and Pentos, but is still the largest settlement in Dorne. The innermost areas of the castle have to be reached by a convoluted route of alleys and passageways, which is a great defence system…. Unless you want to attempt to get through three heavily armoured gates.
Building on sand is serious business, and although the castle has stood for a 1,000 years so far, the stability of the castle foundations can’t be guaranteed. Who knows if an earthquake, or a mauraudering army were to come along it could easily trigger some subsidence issues.
The new Prince of Dorne is hopefully able to dip into the Dornish coffers to cover his castle insurance, as the premium would set him back £390,000 with a large subsidence excess to boot.
The Eyrie – Safe in The Vale
Nearly all the main characters have been to The Vale. Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon lived there as boys, Catelyn Stark held Tyrion prisoner there and Sansa was subject to her aunt Lysa as Arya and the Hound arrived at the gates. Now ‘The Great War’ has been won and the Lords of The Vale have retreated back to their lands, we are yet to see how they will react to the events in King’s Landing.
The Eyrie is the ancient home to House Arryn dating back 6,000 years according to legend. Located in the Mountains of the Moon atop a peak, the ascent is well defended and treacherous – the castle is seen as impregnable to all attacks except those by dragons.
Now Robin Arryn is in charge of The Eyrie, his demeanour didn’t endear him to the audience but it also makes him a high risk homeowner – coupled with the precarious position of the castle he would be looking at a premium of £470,000. This has taken into account the high level of security at the property.
If you live in a higher value home, or your have contents worth more than £50,000, you will probably have experienced problems getting insurance cover at a reasonable price, if at all. That’s where Adrian Flux can help.
Our Home & Contents cover will make sure that your property is adequately covered in the event of a mishap, and at a price you’ll like.