Tag Archives: Household

Over £1 Billion Per Annum Saved By UK Inland Flood Defences

Some interesting research has been carried out relating to the amount that is estimated is being saved in flood damage here in the UK due to the inland flood defences that have been put in place over the years.  The research was carried out by Risk Management Solutions (RMS) on behalf of Flood Re.

The research took into account many thousands of weather event simulations so an awful lot of work has obviously gone into producing the information. The research took into account the situation both without and with flood defences.

You may be surprised at just how much flood damage could be caused inland such as due to rivers breaking their banks. Apparently, it is estimated that with flood defences in place the cost of water damage could amount to around £0.7 billion. However, without flood defences in-situ it is estimated that the cost of damage caused by water could be in the region of £1.8 billion.

That is a huge potential saving of around £1.1 billion as a result of having inland flood defences in place.

An example of the benefit of having flood defences in place can be found in Bewdley, Worcestershire. This small, picturesque Georgian town has the River Severn running through it. For many years, on occasions, the river burst its banks and a significant number of homes and businesses running along the side of the river were flooded causing a great deal of flood damage to buildings and their contents as well as much heartache for the owners of those properties. That was until a few years ago when flood barrier defences were strategically put in place along the side of the river. Since then, there has not been a significant problem with flooding in that location.

Owners of properties within flood risk areas of the UK are likely to be charged more for their buildings cover so it may be a good idea to shop around. In that respect, why not get in touch with us here at AIB Insurance on 02380 268 351 and discuss your requirements with an experienced member of our team who will do all that he or she can to help source suitable, competitive, quality home insurance to cover both your buildings and any contents.

25% Of UK Households Have No Contents Insurance

Whilst it is not a legal requirement to insure the contents and personal possessions in your home, surely it is a sensible thing to cover against the likes of fire, theft or accidental damage. After all, the cost of replacing things like your furniture, white goods and clothes could run into many thousands of pounds.

Well, according to the recently published ABI’s Home Insurance Premium Tracker covering 2018, a staggering one in four households here in the UK have not bothered to arrange such cover. That equates to around six million households.

Yet, the average cost of insuring home contents is only £127 per annum. That is a mere £2.44 per week – a small price to pay for the peace of mind of knowing that you can replace your contents if they are damaged in a fire and only have to pay the excess towards the cost of the items replaced.

Below is a list of the percentage of households in the UK that do not have home contents insurance broken down on a regional basis: –

Northern Ireland                      18%

South East                               19%

East Midlands                         21%

Yorkshire & Humberside        22%

East Anglia                             22%

South West                              22%

Wales                                      22%

North West                              24%

Scotland                                  26%

West Midlands                        28%

North East                               32%

London                                    45%

As you can see, Northern Ireland has the lowest percentage of households without contents cover at 18% and London has the highest percentage at 45%.

The above tracker also revealed that the average premium for buildings insurance in 2018 stood at £258 per annum with this being a drop of 8% when compared with the previous year. The average cost of combined buildings and contents insurance was £307 per annum with this being 1% more than in 2017.

Here at AIB Insurance, we have an extensive panel of closely vetted insurance companies that provide buildings and contents cover. So, if you are a single person living in rented accommodation looking to insure your contents or a family living in your own home looking to cover the buildings and contents, why not give us a call on 02380 268 351 and speak with a friendly, experienced member of our team. He or she will discuss your requirements and then look to obtain a no-obligation quotation from one of our panel members with a view to providing you and your family with complete peace of mind. We look forward to being of assistance.

Azur Group Joins Our Panel Of Insurers

We are pleased to announce that we have added the Azur Group to our closely vetted panel of Azur Underwritinginsurers. The company specialises in providing high net worth clients with home and motor insurance through an arrangement with AIG that used to be shirt sponsors of Manchester United FC.

Azur has a reputation for providing bespoke insurance products for the discerning client to ensure that their high value home, contents and personal belongings are covered in the event of the likes of a fire, theft or accidental damage and that their executive motor vehicle is insured for the same risks

Home Insurance

Azur’s home insurance provides numerous benefits including clients having peace of mind in knowing that their residential properties have comprehensive cover with contents being insured for up to an impressive 50% of the amount that the building is covered for. Their all risks cover is renowned for being one of the best in the insurance industry.

Any newly purchased items are covered immediately with a period of 90 days being allowed to add something to the home insurance policy. It is pleasing to read that wherever a client takes their contents around the world they will be covered. Another interesting benefit is that even if the cost of rebuilding or repairing a property is more than the amount insured it will still be covered. The cost of providing alternative accommodation is met for up to 3 years. With the ever-increasing threat of cyber attack such cover for up to £100,000 is provided.

Motor Insurance

Azur has a reputation for insuring the likes of luxury and high performance cars providing comprehensive cover. An interesting benefit is that if a vehicle is stolen or damaged beyond repair and is less than 3 years of age it will be replaced with a new one of the identical make and model. If a client or their spouse drives another car that they or a family member does not own that is not mentioned in the schedule of the policy he or she will be insured on a fully comprehensive basis.

For the duration of a claim for repair damage, the cost of providing the insured with a hire car of a similar value to the one that is being repaired will be met. A client can choose anyone to repair their vehicle with manufacturer’s original parts being used wherever possible. Car rental cover is provided for up to 90 days.

Our clients will be pleased to read that Azur are renowned for providing a quality service in all their departments from producing the tailor-made quotation, setting up the home or motor insurance policy and processing any claims.

Here at AIB Insurance, we look forward to working closely with Azur for the benefit of our high net worth clients wishing to arrange quality cover for their residential properties and/or motor vehicles.

Is Your Home At Risk Of Flooding?

HouseWe are now in autumn with the daylight hours rapidly getting shorter and it will not be long before winter is upon us. During these seasons, we can be subject to inclement weather such as heavy rainfall and snow. This may come as a surprise to many of you but, according to the Environment Agency, here in England there are 5.2 million homes that are at risk of being flooded. We are sure you will agree, that is a huge number. Many of the homes that are at risk of flooding are located near the coast, rivers and reservoirs.

However, what is rather concerning is that fewer than 10% of those homeowners believe that they are at risk of seeing their homes flooded with water. Also, a lesser percentage of people, have made contingency plans to deal with a flood.

Another concerning and sad statistic is that 36 people have lost their lives in England and Wales in the last 10 years due to flooding. Flooding has also had a negative impact on a lot of people’s mental health.

So, what can you do in the event of a flood warning? Well, if you have more than enough time, you may wish to focus on making sure that your family and pets are safe which may involve vacating the premises and moving to a safe temporary premises. If you have time, move your possessions and contents such as furniture upstairs out of harms way. Make sure that you have turned off the gas, electric and water.  You may wish to prepare a bag of food and non-alcoholic drinks and add some medicines such as pain relief tablets. You may also wish to have a supply of sandbags to be used to try to stop the floodwater getting in through the outside doors.

If you are in immediate danger then you should ring the emergency services on 999 and take their advice. Do not attempt to vacate the property if the flood levels are such that it is too dangerous to do so – far better to wait for the emergency services to rescue you either by land, water or air.

You may also wish to check to make sure that your household insurance covers you for loss and/or damage to the building, fixtures and fittings and the contents and personal belongings caused by flooding. Many household items that are damaged by flooding would need to be replaced with new items so it is important that your home insurance covers you for this.

In this respect, if you are looking for household insurance for the first time or require a quote to compare with your existing insurance, then why not get in touch with us here at AIB Insurance on 02380 268 351. We have an extensive panel of insurers at our disposal.

40% Of Landlords Are Women

Female LandlordsLandlords may like to set aside some time to read the Simple Landlords Insurance – Women in Property Report 2017 with 500 tenants and 400 landlords participating in the survey. The report contains many interesting statistics one of which is that around 40% of landlords here in the UK are now women.

Compare this with the fact that in the region of 17% of women are owners of business then the percentage of women that are landlords rather stands out. So, what are some of the differences in relation to male and female landlords?

Although the main reason why men and women invest in property is to generate monthly income, females were more likely to do so than men. A larger percentage of men invest for capital growth.

When a new tenant moves into a rental property women landlords are much more likely to speak to them than men. The same applies when the tenant moves out. However, there are a slightly greater percentage of women landlords who never personally speak to their tenants in comparison to male landlords.

Women landlords are more likely to rent to people that are on housing bHome Insuranceenefits as well as students, those people that have retired and single employed people than male landlords. Male landlords are more likely to rent to family tenants than female landlords are.

Most tenants did not mind whether their landlord was male or female. However, 15% of male tenants preferred a landlord that was male and 11% of females preferred a female landlord.

Female landlords were more likely to have a smaller portfolio of investment properties (1 to 2 properties) than men. Male landlords were more likely to have a larger portfolio of properties (3 to 10 plus properties) than female landlords.

Women landlords were less likely than their male counterparts to have bought an investment property to let out with the assistance of a buy-to-let mortgage. More women owned their investment properties outright than male landlords.

It is interesting that women landlords were more confident about the year ahead than male landlords in respect of their investment property portfolios.

More information can be found in the above report that may prove of interest to both male and female landlords.

If you are a landlord then why not get in touch with us here at AIB Insurance on 02380 268 351 and we will be happy to discuss your insurance requirements and obtain quotations from our extensive panel of insurers.