Insurance News

Have you noticed that your home insurance premiums have been steadily rising in the past few years? If you have then you may have put it down to inflation or the rising cost of technlogy, furniture and other items that individuals commonly have in their home. However, although both of these elements do play a part in it, it should be noted that the main reason as to why home insurance premiums have been rising of late is the fact that home insurance is the area of the insurance industry that faces a much greater rate of fraud than any other.

It was found that in 2009 62,000 bogus or exaggerated claims were detected by insurers, and that does not include the claims that were not detected. These claims cost money for the insurer and increase the level of liability that homowners have to cover as a result. As such, you could be paying more for the dishonest individuals that are making false claims.

If you are planning to go away for a week or so this summer then you probably have lists of things to pack and to do lists coming out of your ears. After all, there is a lot to consider when you are jetting off for a few days to relax. However, one thing that you probably will not consider to do in advance is check your home insurance.

Home insurance and travel insurance often overlap in terms of the items they cover and the level of coverage presented. For example, both may or may not cover your mobile phone and travel money. In some cases, your home insurance may even cover your luggage providing that there are no precious items in there. However, you do need to read your home insurance and know it inside out before looking for supplementary cover. You should of course have travel insurance for covering flights and accommodation anyway but reading your home insurance policy will tell you exactly what you need when away.

So the title of this post sounds really American but apparently that is what bonfires in the back garden are called these days – yard fires. Where I live, at least four families have them every single year, burning off rubbish and gardening waste around this time of year so that they do not have to dispose of it in other ways. Now I’m not actually sure if this is legal or not these days because it is on their own property but could be considered polluting the atmosphere. Either way, accidents that occur as a result of yard fires are not covered on your home insurance.

At the moment the ground is bone dry and definitely not suitable for hosting yard fires but no doubt some people will be tempted anyway. If you are one of those people then I urge you to weigh up the consequences with the benefits before throwing your home insurance away.

Home insurance is a good all round financial product that can help to protect your home and interests against all sorts of threats, human and natural. This applies all year round on your buildings and contents, unless you rent and then it would just be your contents as a result of the fact that a landlord should be the one to cover the buildings. However, there seem to be more hazards in summer than many people believe. For example, flooding and adverse weather damage are associated with winter but the only real hazard associated with summer is theft. This is not the case.

The hazards that call your home insurance into question in summer are often your own doing. Take the BBQ for example. If not controlled properly in warm weather, like that we have been having, can cause serious fires. As such, it is necessary not to take everything for granted as far as your home insurance is concerned.