Advice « Home Insurance News

Posts Tagged ‘Advice’

Children from poor families held back by lack of computer access

Friday, December 31st, 2010

As both adults and children prepare to exchange unwanted Christmas presents, such as games for computers at retail shops all over the UK, one charity is highlighting the fact that over a million schoolchildren still don’t have access to a computer away from school.

A new study by the E-learning Foundation suggests that at least one million children are being held back in their studies by a lack of computer access. The foundation states it is almost always children from poor families who find access to computers most difficult with only 40% of the poorest families in the UK having a home computer.

Valerie Thompson, the chief executive of the E-Learning Foundation, whose aim is to ensure every schoolchild in the UK has access to the internet at home, said “For those at school, this translates into very tangible disadvantages when it comes to completing homework, researching topics, independent learning, and communicating with teachers and classmates on the school learning platform.

“Without a computer with the internet, this attainment gap measured by the E-Learning Foundation that characterises children from low income families will only get worse”

She asked that more fortunate families bear in mind the struggles that some of their children’s classmates experience in trying to keep up with their homework without a computer at home. Of course for those families who do have a computer at home, household insurance is always a good idea, with many insurance providers offering cover away from the home if the computer is a laptop.

There has been no official response from the Government so far who recently supplied figures saying a quarter of a million schoolchildren from the poorest backgrounds had actually been provided with home computers through the scheme.

Tags: Advice, home insurance, home owners, household insurance, Students
Posted in Advice for tennants, Homeowners, Students, home insurance | No Comments »

Homeowners advised to safeguard their pipes as the big freeze returns

Thursday, December 16th, 2010

Experts in the household insurance business are warning homeowners of the possibility of flood damage and how to avoid it, as the UK prepares itself for another deluge of snow.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) is urging households to contact their home insurance providers to give them advice on how best to tackle the problem of burst pipes. The association believe that insurance providers are ideally positioned to give their customers advice on a subject that can be crucial if the severe weather warnings prove to be correct.

Nick Starling speaking on behalf of the ABI said, “Damage caused by burst pipes can be widespread, traumatic and expensive, but carrying out simple preventive measures before leaving the property unattended for long periods of time can help stave off any problems.”

He advocated a number of measures that should be considered including; draining the central heating system should it need to be turned off for a significant length of time. Damage to attic water pipes can be prevented by opening the loft door and keeping the central heating system at a low temperature. Radiators and taps which suffer from leaks should also be repaired as soon as the problems are noticed.

He went on to stress that some of these procedures are best carried out by professional tradesman if the homeowner is unsure how to carry them out.

Of course the advice will be particularly relevant for second home owners, holiday home owners and landlords with properties currently without a tenant. If the owner cannot manage to check out the property himself due to geographical issues then it is advisable to have a neighbour or property management agent to get the job done for them.

Tags: Advice, Council house tenants, home insurance, home owners, household insurance, property market
Posted in Advice for tennants, Homeowners, home insurance, property market | No Comments »

Grumpy old men show the way

Friday, December 10th, 2010

When it comes to DIY jobs around the house, it appears the grumpy old man generation can teach the younger element a thing or two on how to save money.

A survey by a well known insurance company found that 25% of over 50’s regularly undertook small DIY jobs to protect their homes from the ravages of winter. Jobs such as replacing cracked roof tiles or insulating outside taps proved to be no big deal for the “grumpies” but in comparison only 1% of 25-34 year-olds would be prepared to get their hands dirty doing the same tasks.

The younger generation didn’t fare much better when it came to cutting trees and hedgerows to prevent gale damage, nor were they very interested in preventing flood damage by mending a cracked pipe.

It is a well known fact that household insurance will cover storm damage and flooding from leaking pipes, but many policies expect the homeowner to have a duty of care to his property. It is also true that home insurance premiums are always cheaper if the holder of the policy has several years of no claims. A spokesman for the company who carried out the research said, “The older generations are far more willing to get hands on when it comes to preparing their home for winter, but getting your house safe and sound for the winter is a sensible thing to do and may save you time and money in the long run.”

The report comes as the UK is suffering its bleakest pre Christmas weather for many years. The damage done to many households will only become apparent when the thaw gets underway and insurance companies are bracing themselves for the rush of emergency calls for assistance.

Tags: Advice, DIY jobs, home insurance, household insurance
Posted in Homeowners, home insurance | No Comments »

Prime Minister is forced to delay the drastic housing benefit

Monday, December 6th, 2010

The Prime Minister has been forced to delay the proposed drastic cuts in housing benefits until 2012 after a furious outcry from charities across the country. David Cameron had vowed to bring in a cap on the benefits in April next year in a bid to cut the welfare budget.

The policy will see payments limited to £250 per week for a one-bed flat and £400 per week for any larger homes. It was widely expected to force thousands of families from their homes because they would no longer be able to afford to pay the rent. But in what is being called a humiliating climb down by Mr Cameron, the change will now not take place until January 2012 after he caved in to pressure from his coalition partners over the storm which had an aim of at saving over £2billion a year.

Iain Duncan Smith is expected later this week to announce that households will not lose large chunks of their benefit from April next year, as first announced, but will now have nine extra months to arrange somewhere cheaper to live which will be covered by household insurance.

It is thought that some senior Lib Dem members of the Coalition had demanded the concessions in an effort to avoid the possibility of protests next April, which may have fuelled a political row just before the local elections which are being held in May.

A senior government insider said “This will give families more time to make their arrangements. If they have children at schools in the local area, for example, they will have more time to find another school. It will also give councils more time to look for accommodation for the families they have to move.”

The original proposal did attract widespread public support in the opinion polls. However, the decision to delay the changes supports the growing realisation by some ministers that Labour would try and exploit the changes to attack both Conservative and Liberal Democrat councillors in local elections.

Tags: Advice, home insurance, home owners, household insurance, property market
Posted in contents insurance, home insurance, property market | No Comments »

Tenants to benefit from new housing telephone service

Monday, October 18th, 2010

Housing chiefs in South Tyneside are ringing the changes in an aim to make life easier for their tenants. South Tyneside Homes, who manage the borough’s 18,000 council homes, have introduced a new single phone number system for all of its services.

Tenants can now ring a single number to report a repair, pay their rent, and have questions answered or bid for a council home. A team of sixteen customer service advisers have been trained so that they can now deal with over 80% of queries at the first call. They will also manage a new e-mail service, which will offer tenants another way of contacting the company.

Whenever tenants do call the Housing Services Centre, the system will recognise who they are and what it was the tenant last called about. It is hoped that this will lead to a faster, more efficient service, because the tenant will not have to repeat the same information to different people.

The introduction of the new service has come after tenants said that the current service on the telephone was inconsistent. Tenants also said that they were quite often passed from person to person before their query could be dealt with. Tenants with household insurance are delighted that any problems with their homes will be dealt with much quicker.

South Tyneside Homes Chief Executive, Isobel Riley, said “The opening of our new Housing Services Centre is a fantastic step in the right direction for the company. Having a dedicated central team to deal with all incoming calls will allow our customers to feel confident that they will be speaking to the right person at the first point of contact. It is also a great example of how we have taken feedback from customers on board.”

The new telephone lines will be open from 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday, and 9am to 1pm on Saturday. As the new service develops, it is hoped to extend the weekday opening hours to 12 hours each day between 8am and 8pm.

Tags: Advice, Council house tenants, helpline, home insurance
Posted in Council house tenants, home insurance | No Comments »

Home Wi-Fi networks at risk of hacking in seconds

Friday, October 15th, 2010

Six United Kingdom cities have taken part in an experiment and the results reveal that almost 40,000 networks are at high risk of being used by criminals.

The ‘ethical hacking experiment’ found that 25% of the networks had no password, making them instantly available to hackers. Almost everyone has household insurance to protect the home, but they are not so protective of their wireless network. However, even if they do have a password, this can be breached by hackers in a matter of seconds. This is a warning to the 82% who are sure their connection is secure.

Having a wireless connection has become more popular as people want to use the internet on laptops or an iPad-style device anywhere in the home. However this makes everyone vulnerable to criminals. A hacker can easily ‘piggyback’ onto the connection, and then use this to hide illegal activities such as selling stolen goods or even trying to access to the owner’s bank details, passwords and usernames.

It is not just in the home where people are at risk, about 16% will regularly use public networks in cafés or a hotel where hackers are easily able to steal usernames and passwords at a rate of more than 350 an hour. The researchers set up a fake Wi-Fi network and they managed to hack over 200 people in just one hour.

Jason Hart, senior vice president of CRYPTOCard, made the discoveries by using widely available software. He said “When people think of hackers they tend to think of highly organised criminal gangs using sophisticated techniques to crack networks. However, as this experiment demonstrates, all a hacker requires is a laptop computer and widely available software to target their victims. With the growth in the number of smart phones and wireless networks, it has become far easier for hackers to crack usernames and passwords, allowing them access to emails, social networks, and online banking sites and even to assume the online identity of their victim.”

Tags: Advice, home insurance, security, technology, wi-fi networks
Posted in home insurance | No Comments »

Save money and the environment by using basic ingredients

Thursday, October 7th, 2010

With the shape of the economy looking bleaker by the week, everyone is trying to save money where they can to pay the important bills such as household insurance. Keeping the home clean using home remedies is a great way to save money. It is possible to keep the home clean and fresh without having to spend too much or using the harsh toxins that are in cleaning products. There are some easy cleaning remedies using ingredients that may already be in the home!

People will normally have vinegar in the home for a number of reasons. This common kitchen staple is capable of much more than just putting it on chips. White vinegar will dissolve dirt, soap scum and even hard water stains. It is also mild enough to be mixed in a solution and then used on hardwood floors. It absorbs odours and will not stain. White vinegar is also a great fabric softener and is ideal for anyone with sensitive skin as it is gentle. Add no more than a half cup of undiluted white vinegar to the rinse cycle. For surface cleaning mix in a spray bottle and use one cup of water per one cup of vinegar. This mixture will not only work as a surface cleaner, but is also excellent for cleaning the toilet.

Most homes will have baking soda somewhere in the kitchen, but what some people may not know is it is also an excellent cleaning agent as well. Instead of using scouring cleansers why not use baking soda instead as it works just as well. If it is placed on a wet sponge it will not only scour, but it will also work as a natural odour absorber. Use it on bath tub grime or a stained sink in the kitchen. For any tougher stains, mix it into a paste and then let the mixture sit on the stain for twenty minutes. Sprinkle baking soda on a carpet then let it sit for about twenty minutes before vacuuming it up. The carpet will smell fresher than ever.

Lemons make another natural home-made cleaner. Like baking soda, lemon juice is excellent for removing soap scum and any hard water stains. It is also good for shining brass and copper. Mixing half a cup of lemon juice with one cup of olive oil makes an excellent hardwood furniture polish. The lemons will smell so fresh it will be really pleasant to clean the floor.

Tea tree oil is really worth having in a home, it is one of the strongest natural antiseptics which make it ideal to use for cleaning. Two teaspoons of tea tree oil mixed in a spray bottle with two cups water makes a great way to kill mould and mildew stains. This same mixture is ideal to use as a disinfectant.

With a little experimentation it is possible to have an array of cleaning products using items in a cupboard. These home made products are safer for your family and the environment. They will leave the home looking great and smelling fresh as well as saving on the normal cleaning cost.

Tags: Advice, Discoveries, home insurance, household chores
Posted in Advice for tennants, home insurance | No Comments »

Priority given to families whose home is too small

Monday, October 4th, 2010

Families who are currently living in a one-bedroom council flat will be moved into a larger home much more quickly under new plans by Nottingham City Homes, who are revising their housing allocations policy.

NCH want to give urgent priority to families who are stuck in flats that are too small and get them moved as quickly as possible. At the same time they are asking everyone who is living in property that is too big for them to downsize.

Under the new policy, anyone who is stuck in small flats will be moved up a band to band two. This means they will be offered a new home before anyone who has suffered a relationship breakdown which is non-violent or serious neighbour disputes. They will also be classed as more important than former tenants who have been released from prison. Before the new plans, these people would have been classed as more important.

Figures released by NCH who manage Nottingham City Council’s houses, show the desperate need for family homes and have stated that they will not be forcing any tenant out of their home, even if the property is under-occupied. Anyone who does downsize will have cheaper household insurance because of the smaller property.

Dave Liversidge, housing spokesman for the city council, said “The number of properties we’ve got is diminishing quickly and we need to recognise that we either build more, which will be difficult, or persuade people living in family accommodation bigger than their needs to move – and the question is, will they be prepared to move into flats? And if not, we’ve got a problem.”

The cost of the new housing allocations policy will cost the city council £56,000. They estimate a cost of £21,000 in printing and publicity as they have to make their 12,000 tenants aware of the changes that may affect them via post. There must also be copies at the council offices. Another £35,000 will be spent in IT costs, as all the computer systems will have to be reprogrammed.

Tags: Advice, Council house tenants, home insurance, property market
Posted in home insurance, property market | No Comments »

No revaluation of homes for five years

Wednesday, September 29th, 2010

Residents in Hammersmith and Fulham are to stay within the same council tax bands for at least five years after the coalition government scrapped plans to have properties revalued.

Eric Pickles, the local government secretary, made the announcement on September 24^th that the revaluation of 22 million homes around the United Kingdom, which many in Fulham and Hammersmith feared would lead to tax hikes for thousands, will not happen until after the next election at the earliest. This delay means everyone can spend the money saved on important bills such as household insurance.

The news was welcomed by Hammersmith and Fulham Council, who have worked hard to reduce council tax over the past four years by making council departments smaller and selling buildings.

A spokesman for the council said that the residents would have been hit much harder than the rest of the United Kingdom by the council tax shake-up, because the property prices in the borough had grown much faster than elsewhere since the last valuation was carried out in 1991.

Council leader, Stephen Greenhalgh, said “We welcome the scrapping of the council tax revaluation as it is a tax on aspiration that would increase bills and reverse this council’s year-on-year tax cuts. Thousands of homes in west London would have moved up by at-least one band, with far fewer going down, if the revaluation had gone ahead. This is because thousands of families have improved their homes and local property prices have increased at a faster rate than other parts of the country.”

Every property in the borough falls into one of eight bands, with tax band D the most common. Anyone living in a property with higher values has to pay more than those whose homes fall into a lower tax band.

Fulham and Hammersmith’s concerns were raised after the revaluation of homes in Wales happened five years ago, with the result being a third of properties moved to a higher band and only 8% moved down, poorer areas were among the hardest hit.

Tags: Advice, council tax, home insurance, local council
Posted in home insurance, property market | No Comments »

Holiday season warning for households

Friday, August 27th, 2010

Households across the West Country are being given a reminder to take security much more seriously during the holiday season, as thousands are leaving their homes unattended.

A rural insurance firm has highlighted the message this week as part of a public awareness drive which they hope will go some way in reducing the number of burglaries in the region. Latest figures released from the firm who have members throughout the west show a decrease in the number of theft related claims during 2010 with only 44 claims so far this year. The same period last year saw 53 claims. This decrease is mirrored by recent statistics from the ABI (Association of British Insurers) which saw 69,000 domestic theft claims during the first quarter of the year compared to 81,000 claims during the same period last year. The warning comes as many homeowners are very often preoccupied with the thought of their holiday and forget to secure their properties correctly.

Alan Goddard, Managing Director of the insurance firm, said “Whether it’s for a few days or weeks, the same advice always applies. It’s always a good idea to make your home appear occupied whenever you’re going away. It sounds obvious, but always check that all your doors and windows are properly secure. The Home Office suggests the average cost of a burglary is over £1,000. We know that most burglaries take place when properties are empty and homes without security measures are ten times more likely to be burgled than those with simple security measures such as quality door locks. We also know that a third of burglars enter premises through an open door or window.”

The summer months are always a peak time for thefts from gardens that have easy access; this allows opportunist thieves to take full advantage of stealing valuable equipment which is left unattended, sometimes for just a few minutes. There are still many people who fail to take out household insurance and this can be a costly mistake. It does cost a lot of money if anything needs replacing due to theft or accidental damage. Anyone without insurance will have to replace their losses out of their own pocket.

Tags: Advice, Holidays, home insurance, household insurance, tenants
Posted in Advice for tennants, Holidays, Homeowners, home insurance | No Comments »