Home insurance company warns of heating appliances

Britons should be careful when using their heating appliances no matter how cold the winter gets, one home insurance company has said.

Abbey, a high street bank that sells home insurance and a wide range of other financial services, claimed that £3.3 million worth of damage is caused each year by such appliances .

Incidents that would result in a home insurance claim or hefty repair bill cited by the company include 5,000 electric blanket fires each year and 4,500 accidental fires in the bedroom .

Moreover, the cost of dealing with this damage is in the region of £500, said the bank, something that may require a home insurance claim for cash-strapped Brits.

Prasad Shastri, head of insurance marketing at Abbey, said: It is important that they [additional heating appliances] are checked prior to use to ensure that they are not faulty and that they are used correctly otherwise they could prove to be very dangerous.

Figures released by AA show that home insurance premiums are rising in the UK, with an increase in flood claims attributed as the cause.

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