Over 22 percent of families with children under five have had toys taken from outside their homes according to a Halifax home insurance survey.
The most common item to be taken was a childs bicycle, making up almost 1 in 5 of all home insurance claims from those surveyed. Prams and buggies were also a popular target for thieves, no doubt driven by the costs of such items being quite high. The advice from the Halifax insurance people is to put items away safely when not in use, using a garden shed or bringing them into the house.
A Halifax spokesman understood the potential difficulties of being able to put everything away at some times, especially during the Summer when children are in and out of the house all day, but it is worth doing to avoid the psychological stresses it can cause, even if they have contents insurance in place to cover the financial cost.
The Halifax is reminding all homeowners that they should ensure lightning cover is part of their home insurance especially as summer sees more claims.
According to data from Halifax home insurance customers the average claim for lightning damage costs over GBP 1,400 and such claims are 14 times more common in the summer than winter. The thing with lightning is that it can travel through things, so as well as causing actual damage to the structure of a building it can also go through wires and affect electrical equipment and so on.
A Halifax spokesman also pointed out that lightning can not be anticipated so no one knows where it will strike. For this reason checking the home insurance policy to make sure lightning cover is included is a sensible step to take.
Direct Line has revealed its latest home insurance product to be an all inclusive package that covers all aspects and should save consumers money.
The new Direct Line Home Insurance Plus policy covers both buildings and contents, other possessions such as sports equipment, handbags and their contents. It also incorporates travel insurance, protect for credit cards, legal support and ID theft.
Apart from the comprehensive nature of the policy, which Direct Line believe will allow customers to feel more relaxed, there are going to be cost savings too. With protection for all these different aspects in one policy it negates the need for a range of different insurance products. Using one policy like this is easier and cheaper than the options currently available.
