Insurance Premiums Go Up By £50 In UK Owing To Nightmare Neighbors

Insurance premiums have always been grumbled about. These are one of the necessary evils of the 21st century that keeps the working class’ nose close to the grind for the better halves of their lives. Hence when the insurance companies decided to increase the insurance premium by £50 recently, the public outcry was expected. However, what’s absurd, though justified, is the reason behind the increase in the premiums.

Insurance companies are levying the extra charge to manage payouts owing to “nightmare neighbors.” One in ten British home owners file claims with their home insurance as a result of their neighbors’ “unruly” behavior. In other words, about 10 percent of home owners have or will need to claim on their home insurance as a direct result of their neighbors’ conduct.

Though this might sound bizarre, the incidents of homeowners having to bear the brunt of bad neighbors is on the rise. Recently MoneySuperMarket, an insurance price comparison portal, conducted a survey which revealed some interesting, though disturbing, facts about how neighbors are causing not just emotional but financial burdens to home owners, reported Money Wise.

According to the portal, about 29 percent of homeowners filed a claim on their home insurance policy owing to property damage from unruly gardens and overgrown trees, while another 26 percent made claims because their neighbors neglected their property — leaving gutters clogged, not repairing loose roof tiles, etc. More than one in five claims was generated because of a burst pipe or gas leak at a neighboring property.

Essentially, general lack of upkeep and improper care has resulted in damages to the properties next door, reported Mindful Money. Insurance companies aren’t taking any more risk, since almost 30 percent of homeowners have confirmed that unruly neighbors have or will damage shared wall or fences. Majority of the 2,000 respondents have expressed their concern about the damage that these nightmare neighbors will cause, as reflected by the report.

Moreover, owing to such neighbors, it is only logical that the resell value of the homes will be significantly impacted. This is simply because you can easily alter or repair the interiors or even the exteriors, but you cannot do much about unruly neighbors except complain about them, which in many cases has taken an ugly turn, cited many home owners.

Homeowners, though grumblingly, are expected to shell-out the extra premium since they are confident that their neighbor’s pets, children, or their utter disregard to communal harmony will cause serious damage at some point in the future.

[Image Credit |Sodahead, Annmarie Costella via Queens Chronicle]