Rural homeowners neglect property insurance

According to Halifax Home Insurance ‘Latch-Key Index,’ the majority of country-dwellers are over confident with their home security that they neglect property insurance coverage and put them at an increased risk of crime.

The index shows that millions of countryside dwellers in the UK are not taking adequate steps to protect their homes. The study revealed that at least one-third of rural households, representing about 3.5 million people, give burglars an easy time by leaving their doors unlocked during most days, compared to just one in every 10 households living in urban cities.

People living in rural areas should looking for the best home insurance with comparison sites such as GoCompare.com to ensure that they are choosing the policy that offers the best value and provides sufficient cover.

More importantly, an estimated eight million of Brits living in rural areas, or 70 percent of countryside-dwellers, do not use a burglar alarm. And another 11 percent say they do not see the necessity to install a burglar system.

This overconfidence is related to rural resident’s trusting nature – 56 percent of rural dwellers trust a friend or neighbour to check on the property when they’re away, compared to just 43 percent in urban areas.

However, with countryside crime rising at twice the rate of urban crime, the home insurer is calling on rural homeowners to take simple steps to make burglar’s lives harder and protect themselves against crime.

In the last 12 months, one in eight country dwellers was a victim of crime (13 percent) – with vandalism (39 percent) and burglary (13 percent) among the most common incidents. Furthermore, cases of burglary rise by 30 percent during the festive period, as criminals target homes full of Christmas gifts. The cost to the homeowner is also greater during this time of year, with presents increasing homeowner’s losses by around £520 to an average of £2,680.

Despite these statistics a big number of households living in the countryside believe they would not be a victim of burglary with 33 percent of the respondents said it would be unlikely they would be a victim. Some 29 percent were oblivious at which rural crime is growing.

Martyn Foulds, senior claims manager at Halifax Home Insurance said, “Rural residents should be especially vigilant during this festive season, with burglars aware of the increased value of home contents nestled under the Christmas tree. Halifax Home Insurance offers unlimited cover for home contents* so your home and all your contents are totally protected.