Britain is turning into a nation of homeworkers

Purely office-based working is moving aside as the nation’s workforce embraces a more flexible working week, according to home insurance company, Zurich.

New research has found that almost a third of full-time employees surveyed (30 per cent) spend time during the month working from home, clocking up an average of 15.73 hours – nearly ten per cent of the working month – in the home office.

One in ten of the ad hoc homeworkers surveyed spend more than 40 hours each month and nearly one in twenty (four per cent) clock up more than 80 hours working from home.

Even those who don’t officially work from home find it difficult to leave the office behind, with one in five (21 per cent) respondents saying that they occasionally check emails or read documents from home.

Avoiding the commute to and from work is the most popular reason for homeworking, with 66 per cent of respondents citing it as an advantage. Peace and quiet from colleagues (55 per cent), freedom to choose working hours (50 per cent), flexibility (48 per cent) and lack of distractions (46 per cent) complete the top five reasons for home working. Those surveyed also appreciate a few home comforts; one in five (22 per cent) welcome the chance for a lie-in, while nearly one in ten (eight per cent) tune into daytime TV during their working day.

The trend looks to become more popular in the coming year, with a third of ad hoc homeworkers expecting to spend more time working from home than they have in the past twelve months. In fact, by August 2008 they expect to be working for an average of 26 hours a month from home.

To accommodate the homeworking boom, many respondents have invested heavily in office equipment for the home, with the average replacement value of these items totting up to an impressive £1,140.93. One fifth (21 per cent) have equipment with a replacement value of more than £1,500. Despite their investment, more than one in ten (12 per cent) don’t have their equipment insured against loss, damage or theft on their home contents insurance.

The top five pieces of office equipment owned and used for work purposes at home are computer (88 per cent); email and internet (77 per cent); printer (47 per cent); USB flash drive (35 per cent) and scanner (21 per cent).

Mark Searles, Zurich’s Managing Director, Retail comments: “We are going to see the popularity of homeworking rise and rise as both workers and employers seek a better work/life balance.

“However, those who have invested in their home office need to safeguard their working arrangements, should the worst happen. Making sure that office equipment is adequately insured as part of a home contents policy is crucial for those who rely on home computers and other technical equipment for work purposes.”