Renters risking financial hit as goods to the value of £8bn found to be uninsured

The UK’s renters are gambling nearly £8billion of personal possessions by not protecting themselves against bad weather or crime, according to Zurich Insurance.

Almost a million private renters (37 per cent of those surveyed) have confessed they have no home contents insurance, despite the fact that a third (33 per cent) of private renters surveyed said that they estimate their possessions to be worth more than £10,000 in value, with some individual items worth over £1,500.

Worryingly, a fifth (22 per cent) admit that it would take over two years to replace all of their possessions if they were stolen or damaged and a third (32 per cent) think that they would never be able to afford to replace all of their personal belongings.

One in 10 tenants (eight per cent) who do not have insurance believe that their landlord’s insurance policy covers their contents which is rarely the case, while a quarter (24 per cent) believe that their risk is simply not high enough to make insurance worthwhile.

For some renters other financial commitments have priority. The pressures of paying bills (56 per cent), debt repayments (36 per cent) and pension contributions (12 per cent) are seen as more important than taking out cover for their home possessions, despite the fact that this attitude could cost dearly in the long-run.

Other priorities are also to blame for tenants forsaking contents insurance, as a fifth (17 per cent) said that they would prefer to spend their money on luxuries such as holidays (10 per cent), socialising (9 per cent) and buying new clothes (7 per cent).

Steve Gilbert, home underwriting manager for Zurich Insurance said: “At this time of year, when many households are still recovering from the cost of Christmas, home contents insurance is often seen by renters as non-essential, and can slip down their list of priorities. Be it funding other financial priorities, their lifestyles or even perhaps saving to get a foot on the property ladder themselves, they need to be aware that not having insurance could cost them dearly in the long run - especially if faced with the daunting prospect of replacing all their possessions.

“Whether renters are simply willing to risk their goods, or if it’s a matter of confusion over who’s responsible for cover, we urge all renters to take some time to investigate their position, consider their risk and see if they can really afford not to be covered.”