Ensure your contents cover is wrapped up this Christmas
With Christmas fast approaching moneysupermarket.com advises the nation to check the small print of home contents cover to ensure gifts and valuables are covered.
Research from moneysupermarket.com reveals most providers apply an automatic uplift to the amount of home contents cover over the festive season - at no extra cost, but warns that variations are rife. For example, Lloyds TSB automatically increases the value of its contents cover by £3,000 for two months around Christmas, while The AA increases cover by 20 per cent from 1st December to 6th January.
For Brits looking for a new home insurance quote ahead of Christmas, moneysupermarket.com has teamed up with Halfords to offer customers the chance to win a top of the range Chris Boardman Performance Hybrid bike in time for Christmas.
Julie Owens, head of home insurance at moneysupermarket.com said: "We're all getting into the Christmas spirit, and enjoying early festivities, but be on guard to ensure your home isn't underinsured. Recent moneysupermarket.com research suggests that people have an average spend of £195 sat under their tree, and with long dark nights upon us, expensive presents gift wrapped to take away create the perfect opportunity for home theft, so find out exactly what you are covered for and ensure that you aren't underinsured for your Christmas gifts."
"Being underinsured can have a big impact on any home insurance claim you make. For example, if you have £45,000 worth of contents in your home but are only insured for £30,000, your insurer might only pay two thirds of a claim, even if it is for less than £30,000. High value single items such as jewellery may need to be listed individually on a policy as insurers often impose limits of £1,000 or £2,000 for single expensive items. Popular accessories such as mobile phones, iPods and iPads may also need itemising on a policy for being covered as possessions used away from the home.
"Christmas is a prime time for thieves to strike and being underinsured is not worth the unnecessary heartache, and additional costs, to replace gifts in the New Year. You can save a great deal of time and money by speaking to your provider and increasing your cover where necessary."
moneysupermarket.com's top tips to keep your home safe from thieves
Ensure you lock all windows and doors before leaving the house
Keep all items of value away from windows and out of sight from opportunistic thieves
Regularly check the state of your locks, and where necessary replace older, weaker ones with new locks. Five-lever mortise locks are recommended for external doors while windows should ideally have two bolt locks
Don't leave high value items lying around the house, lock them away safely
Install a good home security system
When leaving the house for a lengthy period of time, put a timer on your light switches to give the impression that you are at home.
If you are away, remember to cancel newspaper and milk deliveries and ask someone you can trust to open and close the curtains and collect mail
Don't leave keys in obvious places such as under a doormat. Also beware of 'hook n crook' thefts - where keys are left so close to a door that a burglar can simply hook them through a letterbox and open the door
Install security lighting - illuminate your visitors for their safety as well as your own. Unwelcome visitors are less likely to loiter if they're 'in the spotlight'.