Sainsburys Bank home insurance division has found that just short of 10 million people are thinking of planting trees in their gardens this year and would like to warn them about the threat of subsidence.
The main advice given by Sainsburys Bank is to select a tree that will be of a suitable size for the garden and also to plant it a good distance away from the house. If homeowners do not follow this advice they may find an increased risk of subsidence and the need for an insurance claim. Leylandii and Willow are two of the most troublesome trees it has been found.
A Sainsburys Bank spokesman revealed that home insurance claims for subsidence have cost British insurers over GBP700,000 per day over the last 5 years. It is therefore important to be aware of the risks before going ahead with planting a tree.
Sainsburys Bank are warning cyclists that even when their bicycle is at home it is still at risk of being stolen and should be protected accordingly.
Over 1,200 bicycles are stolen every day according to Sainsburys Bank figures, showing how popular they are with thieves. It is because of the ready made market for bikes and the fact that they are often easy to take away that the theft numbers are so high, something that Sainsburys would really like to see change. Having home insurance that covers the bicycle is one thing but it is far better not to have to lose the bike and claim in the first place.
Anyone with a bicycle is advised to not the make, model and frame number of their bike and take a picture if possible. Then they should check to make sure it is included in the home insurance policy. Sainsburys Bank remind policyholders to check for any exceptions to cover, so they know if the bike must be stored in a locked garage overnight or something like that.
AA Insurance are asking all owners of holiday homes to make sure their insurance polices cover items that are left there while the property is empty.
The summer months see many people heading off to their second homes, taking a break from the daily grind. However AA Insurance want them to just think about what they may be leaving at the property and to ensure they have adequate home insurance cover in place. Their data suggests more than 10 percent of people do not know if it is adequate or not.
A spokesman from AA Insurance also wanted to remind people to take basic security precautions during the warmer weather. These include closing and locking windows when the property is empty, locking front doors if people are in the back garden and so on.
