Get home base covered

HOUSEHOLD insurance is one of the essentials of life yet one in four has little or no cover for their property or valuables. Accidental loss or damage, escape of water and storm damage are the most-claimed-for problems, while fire, flood, theft and subsidence are other risks against which homeowners need protection.

- Harvey Jones

One in three have made a past household insurance claim, receiving on average £1,154, new research from Confused.com shows.

There are two types of cover. Buildings insurance covers structural damage while contents insurance covers interior items such as furniture, carpets, electronics and clothes.

Homeowners need both, tenants can do with just contents cover.

The average combined buildings and contents insurance policy dipped slightly to £300 last year, said the Association of British Insurers. It warned that premiums may increase this year due to a rise in subsidence claims and frozen pipe payouts after a tough winter, and inflation pushing up building materials and labour costs, increasing the cost of claims.