Climate change increases need for insurance 

A UK Climate Forecast report by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has warned that Britain faces a number of threats as a result of climate change, including an impact on housing stock.

The prospect of hotter summers is something that most people will welcome, but they forget that it can increase the chances of subsidence on their homes. If followed by wetter winters, this could lead to greater flooding problems for homeowners.

Houses built on less suitable land

Although these predictions are for quite some time in the future, we have already seen a dramatic change in the weather, and generally wetter winters mean that many households may experience flooding for the first time. Therefore it's essential to have building and contents insurance in place, just in case.

Similarly, the housing boom of previous years means that more and more houses were built on less suitable land, and hotter summers may cause havoc by increasing subsidence.  If you do get caught out, having building and contents insurance is crucial in lessening the impact, by making it possible to replace anything damaged.

Real peace of mind

Darren Black, head of home insurance at Confused.com, notes that flooding is no longer confined to the current flood zones and, with wetter weather being predicted for the future, more houses are at risk.  "Whilst there are precautions that can be taken to minimise the effect, having home insurance will offer you real peace of mind that items can at least be covered if the worst happens," he says.

"Similarly with subsidence, even new homes are susceptible, so it is essential to have your home insurance in place, to help make picking up the pieces a little less painful in the event that it does happen," Black adds.