Home Contents Insurance

Esure is another notable exception, and they now offer full cover for damage from the top five most common vermin to all policy holders for an extra £21.99 a year. Compare that to the cost of having a hornet’s nest removed – £100 – or £150 to have rodents eradicated, and it seems like a good investment.

Peter Priestley, president of the British Pest Control Association, has seen some of the worst pest cases, the most notable being a house in Preston where the upper floor of a house completely collapsed as a result of rats chewing through the joists. In the Isle of Man, they have a particular problem with rats. One man was found dead, having fallen down the stairs – the bottom half of his torso had been eaten by rats that had entered his house.

More everyday cases involve squirrels breaking ornaments and damaging furniture – causing damage that regularly adds up to £4000. Mice and rats chewing through flooring is another expensive problem, the bill can reach £1500 in a worst-case scenario. The costs of eradicating the pests can also be inflated due to the fact that the pest control is currently unregulated. As an Esure spokesperson said, “Many people are left to find their own contractor, potentially calling out ‘cowboy’ pest controllers to their homes to then be faced with a hefty bill.”

Check and clear all gutters – don’t forget any on freestanding buildings like the garage. Unless you have the proper ladders and safety equipment, this can be a dangerous job so you may want to hire a professional cleaner. Clean out leaves and debris. In the autumn and winter, as well as summer showers, gutters are in constant use. Overflowing gutters leak down walls, causing problems with damp inside and out, from redecorating to damp proofing as water penetrates the fabric of the building. A costly affair that can be simply prevented with the right preparation.

Examine your roof. You can use binoculars to help. Check for any loose, cracked or slipped tiles. You don’t want rain to get in – there’s no sinking feeling like the one you get on hearing the steady drip, drip, drip of water coming from your ceiling. In addition to nuisance, water can cause long-term, expensive problems like damp or dry rot. Not to mention having to redecorate! There could also be problems in high winds – a loose slate or tile could be blown loose and hit you or a passer-by. Not a risk you’d want to take.

Keep an eye on any exterior finishes and paintwork. These are continually exposed to the elements – summer heat can make paint or underlying surfaces expand and crack or blister. When winter comes, these damaged areas contract with the cold and more cracks can start to form, letting in moisture. Once water gets in, frost and ice expand it causing even more damage. It’s well worth tackling any surface damage early with a lick of paint or sealer.

I called the police to report the event as in the commotion my friend had forgot to do this and already had started to move possessions and put them away. I felt we should leave things as they were for know, until the police came and did their bit and told us we could start tidying up. It was during this wait for the police that my friend opened up and explained that this year they had not renewed their home contents insurance.

Suddenly an upsetting event pretty much became a tragedy. It had taken them years to build up what they had and now with only one wage coming in, it was unlikely to be back to normal within a short period of time.

I asked, “why did you not renew you home contents policy”, his reply was “we couldn’t afford to”. I wanted to say that they couldn’t really afford not to, but the timing did not seem right.

The police came and went and we both new it was unlikely that anything could be done about it as no one had seen anything. Fingerprints were looked for and eventually we were allowed to start clearing up the mess including fixing the broken window. A few days later he told me that the hardest thing, was telling his children their why their favourite toys had been stolen and his wife picking up the family photos from the garden.

• Clean out the gutters. Autumn can be especially hard on gutters as lots of debris can accumulate. That must be removed. Blocked gutters and down spouts can quickly cause enormous damage if water is left to overflow and penetrate the structure. But please be careful with this job. Working up ladders is dangerous so why not get your window cleaner to do the job!

Now get your binoculars out and check the roof. Search for cracked, loose or slipped tiles. A leaking roof can result in costly damage. Ceiling damage, rot, redecoration can quickly swallow up money. Then there’s the a safety issue. If a tile slips off, someone could be badly injured. Even your car could take a direct hit!

Check out your exterior paintwork. Any cracked, peeling, or blistered paintwork needs attention. Touch it up to preserve the wood from damage. Summer time can be surprisingly hard on paintwork. High temperatures and big temperature changes create expansion and contraction cracks ready to let in the following winter to do its worst.

If you’ve heavily used an open fire during the winter, get the chimney swept. Heavy build-ups of soot can easily catch fire and during the summer the soot absorbs damp.

The easiest, and the most effective, solution is to make sure you shop around for the cheapest deal, every time the policy comes up for renewal. It’s not much fun but it will only take 30-40 minutes of your time and you will no doubt find a cheaper quote than your insurance company can offer you on renewal. Applying online often gets you an extra 10% discount, and paying by direct debit will also trim off a bit more. Take a look on this website and you may find the cheapest deal is already ready and waiting!

There are other things you can do to reduce your premiums, for example home security. Insurers look kindly on neighbourhood watch schemes, and give discount if you have security locks on your windows. External security lighting, better locks on your external doors and a burglar alarm will also see your premiums go down. Of course it will cost you money to install these security devices, but they will also make your home less of a target to burglars. The neighbourhood watch scheme comes for no extra cost though!

As a general rule, don’t just blindly accept you insurance company’s renewal quotes. They offer the best deals to their new customers, not their loyal customers that have been with them for years. You could save considerably by shopping around, so it’s definitely worth a try!