Insurance

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garden security news

Insurance With Intelligence

Independent specialist home insurance with excellent cover for garden statuary, machinery, furniture and valuable plants.

Expert advice and first class service – the antidote to the 'computer says no' call centre mentality.

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For Guidance on Garden Insurance, please find these sections below:

Latest Insurance News

Are Your Garden Contents Insured?

The State of Garden Insurance in the UK

The recently published British Crime Survey (BCS) for 2007/8 stated that Domesic Burglary was "stable"compared to the previous year, whereas the comparative figures for "Police Recorded Crime" showed a reduction of 4%.

Good news indeed!
Unfortunately, there are no statistics recorded specifically for Garden Crime, but, based upon the recent warnings issued by several major Insurers it would appear that Garden Theft is, indeed, a growing problem. Companies expressing their concern include:-

Cheshire Building Society: Karen Torson, Partnerships Business Manager
"Thieves will seize anything they can sell, including patio furniture, ornaments, electrical equipment, such as lawn mowers and pressure washers and expensive plants and shrubs"

esure Home Insurance: Mike Pickard: Head of Risk & Underwriting
"The trend towards converting useful storage space into valuable living space - and the nation's obsession with hoarding clutter, is putting pressure on garden storage and may cause a surge in garden theft as belongings are left unsecure and vulnerable"

Halifax Home Insurance: David Rochester: Head of Underwriting
"Homeowners should not neglect to make sure their oudoor property is as secure as what is inside and people should ensure their home insurance policy covers potential garden theft"

NFU Mutual: Laura Wood: Corporate Communications Exec.
"The value of the rural garden is increasing with people spending more on state of the art barbecues, expensive garden furniture, tools and sometimes valuable statues. Although people review their home security, they often forget about sheds, stores and gardens."

RIAS: Janet Connor: Managing Director
"Sadly, we are all now sitting targets for garden theft, yet people are not taking anywhere near enough precautions"

Sainsburys: Neil Laird: Sainsbury's Home Insurance Manager
"Garden Theft is on the increase and people need to take care to protect their homes. Homeowners need to review their garden securityand ensure they have adequate insurance"

Accordingly, we advise all gardeners to

1] Take a copy of our Garden Inventory to help calculate the true value of your garden - most people are truly amazed!

2] compare your values against your insurance policy.

3] if necessary, contact your broker or insurance company

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1] Catalogue Your Garden Contents

Keep a full catalogue of all high value items, especially garden antiques, using the Garden Inventory free of charge.

2] Check Your Home Insurance Policy

Does your home insurance policy cover items outside your house?

Do you have to specify individual items over a particular value?

Does your policy limit the value of outdoor items covered?

Can you cover your garden contents for an extra premium? If so what excess would apply?

Some policies' value limits apply to the whole period of the insurance rather than to a single event - does yours?

Check the maximum period you are allowed to be away from home during the term of the policy (normally this is a maximum continuous period.)

Is the policy excess the same as for Home Contents?

Will your insurer only cover you if you use specified security installers?

Are you covered for re-landscaping if you suffer damage from natural events or malicious damage?

Are you covered for the theft of plants, shrubs & trees?

Consult your insurance company/broker before installing any new security system as they may well have minimum standards to adhere to.

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• Gardien recently conducted a survey of 55 major Insurance Companies, based upon the information made available by them on the Internet and supplemented, where possible, by our own enquiries. We looked at the amount of cover available for incidents of garden theft under the major headings of:
  > Items Stolen From Locked Outbuildings 
  > Items Left In The Open
  > Plants / Trees etc.
• In 30 of the above Companies, cover for such incidents was either excluded or – at best, minimal.
• By contrast, there are some notable exceptions, particularly companies that specialise in the high net worth clientele, where it is possible to obtain cover between £5,000 - £10,000 in some / all of the above categories.
• There are companies / organisations offering very attractive cover under the heading of "Garden Insurance" policies, however, these seem to always be combined House/Garden Insurance policies.

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