Brits plan to escape weather with extended break away

Over a million Brits plan to abandon their UK home for an extended period as they look to escape the British weather, according to Sainsbury's Home Insurance. Although many people may spend a few weeks abroad over the course of a year, the bank's findings reveal that over the next 12 months, there are some 4.79 million Brits who plan to take extended leave from their UK homes, spending more than a month away at a time.

Unsurprisingly the largest numbers planning to take prolonged leave of more than 30 days at a stretch over the next 12 months, fall into the over-55 age group, with some 1.72 million saying that they plan to be away from their UK home for at least 30 days. Sainsbury's Home Insurance warns homeowners who intend to be away from home for a period of weeks to make sure that they check the small print on their insurance policy because more than a third (37%) of home insurance policies only cover the family home for up to 30 days' "unoccupancy".

The findings reveal that the main reasons for leaving the UK for over a month are to visit family / friends (38%); this is followed by escaping the British weather (30%); extended travel or backpacking outside of the UK (26%); job secondment or temporary relocation (14%). The reasons differed between age groups, with the over-55s most likely to be looking to visit family or friends (46%) and the care-free under-24s most likely to be backpacking or travelling (cited by 48% of this age group).

Neil Laird, Sainsbury's Home Insurance Manager, said: "Anyone who is considering taking an extended trip away from home, therefore leaving it unoccupied, needs to inform their home insurance provider and check that they are still covered by their policy whilst they are away. This really is essential and even applies if you have arranged for a friend or neighbour to keep an eye on the house."

From a regional perspective, people in the South East (15%) are most likely to be taking an extended break away from their home over the next 12 months, followed by people in London (14%). People in Yorkshire & Humberside region (4%) are least likely to flee the family home for more than a month.

Sainsbury's Home Insurance provides 60-day unoccupancy cover as standard. In the event of a home being left unoccupied for more than 60 days, the Bank will increase the premium to reflect this risk and provide cover, as long as the customer adheres to the below points:

Use all locks and security devices on all external doors and windows.
Set your burglar alarm if you have one.
Turn off the gas and electricity at the mains. If you have a burglar alarm, only turn off the gas supply.
Arrange for your home to be checked at least every two weeks by someone aged 16 or over at the time.
In addition, during the months of October to March (inclusive) homeowners must turn off the water supply at the mains and drain the water and heating systems. If you wish to heat your home throughout this period and your heating system uses the water supply you do not need to drain the system providing the heating is thermostatically controlled and is switched on and set to maintain a temperature of at least 50 degrees Fahrenheit or 10 degrees Celsius.

For more information, visit sainsburysbank.co.uk