However, according to the latest data and analysis from the AA Insurance Consumer Index, 48% of homeowners do not consider the items in their garden when buying home insurance. Two thirds (64%) of gardens in Northern Ireland could be underinsured as they did not consider any aspect of their garden contents when buying their home insurance. More than half of homeowners in London (54%) and the North East (53%) also did not add their garden items to their insurance.
Three quarters (75%) of the 15,500 strong AA-Populus Panel who have both home insurance and a garden believed that their shrubs, pots, garden tools, chairs, tables and garden toys would cost no more than £5,000 to replace.
More expensive gardens could be found in Eastern England (14%), the South West and Wales (both 12%) where more than one in 10 believed their garden contents costs between £5,000 and £10,000.
Separate AA research shows that more than a third of households (36%) plan to buy spend more than £150 on garden tools and one in 11 (9%) are splashing out £900 on a hot tub this summer.
This coincides with the latest ONS Crime Statistics, which shows that 595,000 thefts of property from outside the home took place last year, a 23% increase when compared to 2017. So it is a timely reminder that the contents of the home are not just constrained to the items within the property.
Janet Connor, managing director for AA Insurance services says; “As a nation we love our gardens, and we spend a lot of our hard earned cash improving them each year.
Garden theft has seen such a sharp increase last year so it’s good to protect yourself. Rather than digging a hole for yourself, a few minutes spent in the garden will give a good idea of how much you’d need to spend should the worst happen. When faced with filling out an insurance application, the term ‘contents’ can be misinterpreted to just the things within the home. Even though it’s outside, you should still insure it.”
