A new warning has been released today as it has emerged the average Brit stores more than £1,300 worth of private goods, including family heirlooms, outside their house where they may not have insurance.
The research, commissioned by UIA Mutual Insurance, suggests that a fifth (20%) of us have more than £1,500 stored outside. Worryingly, 52% of Brits do not have insurance covering items stored outside of their home, meaning any damage, loss or theft will hit them directly in the pocket. In fact, 12% admit to having absolutely no cover whatsoever on their items.
Jon Craven, CEO of UIA Mutual Insurance says, “It’s extremely worrying how many Brits are so carefree with their possessions. It’s really important to protect the things you own at all times and the best advice I can give a homeowner is to make sure you know what protection you have. Make sure you are aware of what your insurance covers, whether that be indoors or outdoors.”
Bikes, power tools, furniture and BBQ equipment are among the most popular items stored externally. While some of these are clearly ‘outside items’ – no-one would expect you to lug your BBQ into your kitchen every time you use it – there are ways of ensuring any potential threat is minimized.
However, even then, only 18% of the UK have any form of private CCTV covering part of their property. Seemingly, Brits are leaving it too late to secure their homes, with 90% of people who had been burgled only taking extra security measures after the fact.
This is despite figures from ONS’s Crime in England and Wales report showing a 9% increase in domestic burglary, with 689,000 recorded cases in 2017. Interestingly, 274,000 of these were bicycle thefts, showing that the outside areas of the home can be targeted.
Martin Bayfield, ex-police officer, Crimewatch presenter and International Rugby Player is working with UIA Mutual Insurance to raise awareness of this issue. He says, “Burglary is a serious issue and although many people have the contents of their home locked away and protected, many forget about the things that are in their garden, shed or garage. The research shows that people aren’t doing the simple things that can protect their property, such as extra security measures like security cameras or even just having the right insurance, should the worst happen.”
Insurance Edge Comment;
Many homes have items like mowers, tables and chair, garden ornaments, tools, lawn mowers and many more items all round the rear of the building, or propped up against a shed or garage. You can take simple steps to protect your stuff by investing in a secure shed and fitting a lock.
If that sounds too expensive, then we recommend you buy a couple of motion sensor, night vision CCTV cameras from the many online, and High Street outlets selling the latest cameras. These can cost as little as £25 and, once fitted in the right position, can watch what is happening outside your property, and often ping an alert to your smartphone as the camera begins recording.
You may want to invest in a better grade of durable outdoor camera, plus a monthly subscription so that the many hours of footage can be backed up in the Cloud, in case you need to review an incident from the last week or so. Having a CCTV system is great but if you cannot store the data and access it say a week or so after the event, then you won’t have evidence to show the Police.
Read some useful further info on top rated CCTV like the Nest, Swann or Foscam products metioned here. Insurance Edge has no commercial relationship with any of these products by the way.
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