Holiday Home and second home property insurance written in English is a must for those with language difficulties

Well known insurance companies including Intasure Insurance, Staysure Insurance and Andrew Copeland Insurance (and sveral more) mentioned in this press release from JML today....
Find out more by reading it now.

Holiday Home and second home property insurance written in English is a must for those with language difficulties

Latest HomeLet Rental Index is out & average UK rental prices increase by 4.7%

HomeLet the Landlord and Tenant insurance specialists have just issued the final rental price index for 2012. They say that "Average UK rental prices increase by 4.7%"

It shows the average cost of renting a home in the UK has increased by 4.7% over the past year to £782 per month.

This month's report also shows the average cost of renting a home in London is the most expensive UK region - increased by 6.9% against the same time last year to £1,212 per month. In contrast, average rents in the North East increased by a minimal 0.8% to £523 per month - and has consistently remained the least expensive region in the UK to rent a home.


Other headlines from the December HomeLet Rental Index show:

• When the Greater London figure is removed, the average cost of renting a home around the rest of the UK increased by 1.7% over the past year to £654 per month
• Renting a home in Greater London is currently an average of 132% more expensive than in the North East
• Tenants are earning an average of 0.3% less than the same time last year at £27,799 per annum
• The average age of a tenant increased by 1.7% over the past year to 34.2 years

(Source HomeLet insurance) If you are a Landlord or Tenant do make sure you have adequate insurance.

Do remember if you are a tenant that your belongings, furnishings or equipment within the property are not covered by any insurance policy maintained by the landlord, therefore tenants are advised to keep their own possessions insured.

Many Landlords also think that their carpets, curtains and other possessions will be covered by the tenant's insurance, well they will not be. So if there is a burst pipe for example and the ceiling falls down although the insurance should pay for repairs, they won't pay for replacing that carpet so even if your property is let "unfurnished" you will still need limited contents cover.

Find out more about HomeLet insurance Here 

Insuring a property in France

Earlier this month I picked up a copy of "The Connexion - Helpguide to Moving To France". Although this was the 2011 Edition that I found in an English bookshop in Antibes, it is really full of very interesting facts. 

These range from ways to type accented French characters, information about sales in shops - Apparently until 2008 shops could only hold sales in two six week periods set by the state. Now shops can choose two one week periods during the year.  Can you imagine this in a British or Irish high street, when sales seem to go forever!

Another interesting point covered is what happens when you have French (or other foreign) registration plates and visit the UK? Apparently the police have been known to stop and even tow away cars if they spot a foreign plate twice in six months. So for example you visit England in March for two weeks and go back across the Channel (or Irish Sea) and return in September for another week, the UK Police's system automatically assumes that the driver has lived in the UK for a full six months with out registering the vehicle on UK plates and paying UK road tax! 

The magazine suggests you keep your car ferry tickets and proof of where you live outside the UK to prove a situation. More tips and information can be found at their website www.moving-france.com 

One area I was really interested in, was to see what the magazine said about property insurance in France. They go into detail about insurance and how unlike in Britain and Ireland if you don't want to renew the insurance, you just let the company know and move somewhere else, with a French company you must give two months in writing before the period of insurance ends to terminate the arrangement. 

The magazine does not however suggest buying your house insurance (main home / holiday rental / holiday home etc) from a company that is based in the UK for example. Although within the insurance you will most likely pay an amount for French tax within the premium.   

When the policy is written in English it is much easier to fully understand what it all means. If it does not cover you for storm damage, you can easily ask. Most of  the specialist insurance companies like INTASURE, ANDREW COPELAND and STAYSURE have telephone advisers so it is very straightforward. 

So if you are looking for property insurance (structure and contents of course) in France or other European countries visit this page at the jml-insurance website today

Rise in vehicle crime in the Wycombe District of Buckinghamshire

Have just received a notification that there is a rise in vehicle crime in the Wycombe District of county Bucks in the south of England.

According to the alert "The High Wycombe area has seen a rise in theft from motor vehicles. Most offences of theft from vehicle are opportunist. If valuable possessions (eg, handbags, laptops, sat navs, iPods, mobile phones, cameras) are left on show inside a vehicle, it is much more likely to be targeted by thieves. Even items of little value, such as shopping bags and clothing, may tempt a potential thief to break into the vehicle to see whether they contain anything worth stealing.

Offences can take place during the day or night, whether a vehicle is parked in a driveway, on the street or in a public car park. Typically thieves will smash windows to gain entry; sometimes they will break door locks or, on older vehicles, prise the door away from the body of the vehicle.

Thames Valley Police are urging the public to follow the advice below so that you can become less of a target and reduce the chances of becoming a victim

The following sections contain crime prevention and reduction advice for motorists and car park owners, as well as tactics that will assist police and partners to reduce this type of vehicle crime.

Crime prevention advice

• When leaving your car, close all windows and lock your car
• Park your car in an attended car park
• Look for public car parks approved by the Park Mark scheme
• When parking at home, use your garage. If you don't have a garage, park in a well-lit area
• Don't leave anything on display in your vehicle
• Take all your personal possessions with you
• Remove sat nav holders and visible sat nav ring marks from windscreens
• Leave the glove box open to show there's nothing inside
• Fit an alarm or immobiliser to your car
• Record the details of your property on the Immobilise website
• Do not store your car's documents in the car
• Secure your wheels using locking wheel nuts" - Source TVP

One of the above points "Leave the glove box open to show there's nothing inside" might in fact trigger of an interior light in there and this means that the battery might drain overnight or when it is parked.

Do make sure that you have your car insurance up to date, there are a great choice of companies advertising on the jml Insurance website like Endsleigh, eCar Insurance, Staysure for the over 50s and Quotezone. 

Find out more at  http://www.jml-insurance.co.uk/types.php?id=1&sec=2     

Rising kidnap risk - are you insured for your travels?

Insurance Insight reported yesterday "Rising kidnap risk amid Eurozone unrest"

According to Francesca Nyman "The rising risk of abductions as a result of social unrest in the Eurozone is creating opportunities for insurers specialising in kidnap and ransom policies.

There is no evidence yet of an increase in kidnapping in crisis-struck Greece, Italy and Spain, but insurers are apparently banking on an upturn to boost sales of policies."  More on this Here  and at Reuters Here who state that About 15 insurers worldwide offer kidnap cover.

To find out more about Kidnap and Ransom insurance and how much it would cost to take out cover visit the jml-insurance site Here