When taking out a home insurance policy, customers have been advised to take extra care when reading the small print, by a leading industry expert.
Making the effort to research properly and seek out professional guidance will ensure that homeowners receive the best cover possible.
Graeme Trudgill, technical and corporate affairs executive at the British Insurance Brokers' Association (Biba), pointed out that cover policy may often include complicated requirements such as the occupancy clause.
Under this rule, home insurance customers cannot leave their homes unattended for more than a certain number of days. Clauses such as these could lead to further complications for the homeowner and need to be taken into consideration when purchasing a policy.
"Lots of people don't get advice, they just go online, find the cheapest thing and click 'buy'. What they really need to do is to speak to their insurance provider who will provide them with the necessary information so that they are aware of this kind of thing," Mr Trudgill said.
His comments follow in the wake of recent research conducted by moneysupermarket.com, which found that a large number of home insurance customers were not aware of such clauses.
These rules could see many Brits headed overseas for a long holiday leave their homes as well as contents uninsured. The findings are especially worrying for Britons who live abroad for part of the year, claimed the financial advice website.
An analysis of the home insurance policies provided by the UK's leading lenders by moneysupermarket.com also found that the occupancy clause could vary from between 30 days to 60 days, and could effectively annul the insurance policy of many unsuspecting Brits.
Recent data published by the Financial Services Authority found that victims of burglary who lack adequate home insurance collectively face bills as high as £200 million a year.  |
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