How to protect your home as burglaries rise

The final three months of the year are worst for burglaries, according to data from the Office of National Statistics – with October to December having the highest numbers of residential burglaries both last year and in the previous year.

Last year, the number of burglaries recorded by police forces in England and Wales rose 11% between September and October, with October seeing 15,158 thefts. 

As the winter months set in again, we'll look at what you can do to protect your home, and how your home insurance can help.

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What to check in your home insurance

Fortunately, most home insurance policies protect your belongings against theft as standard, but they don't all do so identically. Where on your property your things are when stolen, who they belong to, and the time of year can all affect the cover.

Inside or outside?

Between July and October, we analysed 79 contents policies. Of these, a small number (6%) didn’t cover possessions stolen from an outbuilding, such as a garage or shed.

Among the majority (87%) that do extend cover to outbuildings, the theft limits are usually far lower than what you can claim for items taken from inside your home, so it’s worth checking that anything stored outside is properly protected.

For example, one policy offered a total contents sum insured of £50,000, but this dropped to just £750 for items stolen from an outbuilding.

Cover is reduced even further for items left in the garden. In two policies – with overall contents limits of £50,000 and £175,000, respectively – cover for contents left in the open was capped at £500.

• Find out more: best home insurance providers

Whose stuff?

If you’re having guests over and are unfortunate enough to be the victim of theft while they’re staying with you, 76% of policies we checked will pay out for their belongings as well as yours.

However, cover for guests’ possessions isn’t as extensive as for your own contents. While the contents sum insured is typically in the tens of thousands, it’s £1,000 or less for 59% of the policies we analysed – and in some cases, as little as £300.

• Find out more: what's happening to home insurance premiums 

Christmas cover

On the plus side, 73% of policies automatically increase your sum insured at Christmas, or during religious festivals or weddings – often by around 10%. 

This allows for the temporary rise in the value of your possessions if you’re stocking up on gifts, food or drink in the run-up to a special occasion.

Stolen keys 

If your keys are stolen, almost all policies include cover to replace your external door locks, with the only exceptions in our analysis being two policies aimed at renters.

However, insurers aren’t as generous when it comes to window locks, which aren’t covered by 63% of policies.

How home security can affect your premium 

How secure your home is can make a big difference to what you pay for insurance. Insurers may offer lower premiums if your property has good security measures, such as strong door locks, a working burglar alarm, a safe for valuables or if you’re part of a neighbourhood watch scheme.

Research from comparison website Uswitch also found that being at home more often can help keep premiums down. In test quotes for a customer living in a three-bedroom house in Northumberland, the average annual cost of the five cheapest policies was £146.

When the same person said they were often away overnight (rather than being at home day and night), the premium rose by almost a fifth to £173.

Tall trees near a property can also have an impact. They may suggest a higher risk of subsidence to insurers and can make parts of the property less visible – potentially offering cover for intruders. 

In Uswitch’s test, when trees taller than 10m were near the home, the average quote increased by 16% to £170.

• Find out more: How to get cheap home insurance 

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How to protect your home

As well as being a distressing experience, a burglary will also drive up your home insurance premiums , as insurers see customers who have experienced an incident that could have led to a claim as being more likely to claim in future than other customers. 

In June and July, when we surveyed 2,804 home insurance customers who had claimed in the past two years, 14% told us their most recent claim had been for theft or burglary. The average amount claimed following a burglary was £1,650.

Fortunately, there's plenty you can do to minimise the likelihood of being targeted by burglars: 

1. Install a burglar alarm: These can help alert you and the authorities to theft, but even the presence of a basic alarm system can be enough to deter thieves from picking your home in the first place.
2. Improve outdoor lighting: The more concealed or shadowy spaces around your property, the easier it is for a burglar to gain access to your home unseen. 
3. Use timer switches inside: If your indoor lights are timed to switch on and off in a way that simulates someone being home, burglars will be less confident about approaching your property while you're out.
4. Upgrade locks: Make sure your home is well-secured with key-operated multi-point locks, deadbolts and key-locked windows. As well as making it trickier for a thief to get in, these basic precautions will also keep your insurance premiums lower.
5. Secure packages and valuables: Don't advertise your home as a potential treasure trove for burglars. Keep valuables and Christmas presents out of sight and schedule deliveries so you're in when they arrive, or arrange for a safe place for parcels to be left if you're out. 

Find out more: Making a home insurance claim