London is the UK’s burglary claims capital, with over half of the top 20 house-breaking hotspots, according to the website MoneySuperMarket. But top is actually Manchester’s M21 postcode, and other big cities such as Birmingham and Liverpool also feature in the list.
The firm drilled through 3.1million home insurance quotes run through its comparison service over the last 12 months, and identified the places most and least likely to file a burglary claim.
Manchester’s M21 Barlow Moor and Chorlton-cum-Hardy postcode tops this year’s list of areas with the most home insurance claims for burglary, pulling in 45.2 theft claims in every 1,000 home insurance quote enquiries over the past year. Last year the LS13 postcode in Leeds topped the table with 34.8 claims in every 1,000 enquiries.
Next, with 41.8 claims in every 1,000 enquiries, is London’s Herne Hill and Tulse Hill in SE24, followed by Muswell Hill (what is it with London’s hills?!) in London N10, with 40.9 claims in every 1,000 enquiries.
London also takes fourth and fifth place, with RM8 (Dagenham, Beacontree and Beacontree Heath) and N2 (East Finchley, Fortis Green and Hampstead Garden Suburb) with respective totals of 35.9 claims and 34.5 claims in every 1,000 enquiries.
After Liverpool’s L18 (Allerton and Mossley Hill) and L22 (Waterloo) districts with 33.3 and 32.6 claims apiece, it’s back down to London for the rest of the top 10 as N18 (Upper Edmonton and Edmonton), UB6 (Greenford and Preivale) and SE27 (West Norwood, Gipsy Hill) registered respective claims of 32.3, 30.9 and 30.5 in every 1,000 enquiries.
Home insurance, like car insurance, is based largely upon risk, which means if you live in an area more susceptible to break-ins, you’ll pay a higher premium, the firm says.
Typical contents premiums across the UK are around £95, and towards £150 if you take out contents and buildings combined from the same insurer. On average, householders living in higher risk postcodes will pay 24 per cent more for their cover compared to the national average – this equates to an extra £36 for their policy.
Kevin Pratt, home insurance expert at MoneySuperMarket, said: “Places affected by higher rates of burglary insurance claims tends to mean higher annual insurance premiums for those who live there, typically premiums are 24% more expensive on average. Higher value properties could expect to pay even more than this.
“If you have not previously been burgled, but there are higher rates of burglary claims made within your postal district, you are likely to be paying steeper premiums as a result. Insurers often take a blanket approach to assessing postcode districts for home insurance premiums rather than looking at insurance applications on a case by case basis. The key thing is not to simply accept your insurance renewal – even if you live in a postcode which has a higher claim rate for burglaries, you can still save a huge amount by doing your research and switching to a better deal online.”
For the ‘ten ways you are making it easy for burglars’, click here.
