Home insurance warning over gardens

Those with gardens should make sure their home insurance policy covers any items they might have in it, one expert has warned.

A study by Nationwide found that more than one-third of respondents value their garden contents between £250 and £1,000.

Robin Bailey, Nationwide's insurance director, explained that for this reason it is important that people have a home insurance policy which covers items in the garden.

He said: Some of us may be planning to spend time in the garden this bank holiday weekend.

Items such as lawnmowers and garden furniture will be dusted off and may be left out in the open for long periods of time, resulting in easy pickings for opportunistic thieves and vandals.

He added that taking photos of expensive items kept in the garden, such as ornaments and furniture, can help if someone needs to make a home insurance claim .

Yesterday, Abbey reported that the recent storms in the UK had led to a surge in home insurance claims .