Over third of insurance claims with East of England company related to home working in 2020
36% of claims made last year were for portable items
Over a third of claims made to an East of England-based insurance broker were related to home working in 2020.
According to PolicyBee, portable equipment such as laptops and phones accounted for 36% of claims processed last year, the largest sector for the company.
They were followed by claims for other office contents, accounting for 28%.
With working from home remaining the normal for many people across the country, people are being urged to make sure their items are properly protected.
Jane Aldous, claims team leader at PolicyBee, said:
"Many people have closed the door on commuting in favour of walking to the cabin at the bottom of the garden or a bedroom/office to start work. Others may be logging in from the local cafe at times, once restrictions allow.
"As such, we would urge people to check their contents insurance policy does, in fact, cover their technology for work purposes for use at home, and away if it is portable.
"Many household contents claims involve flood and water damage from leaks, or theft, so it could be a big loss if you happen to be wrong in thinking your policy will cover you for using your home technology for business use."
Kerri-Ann Hockley, head of customer service, added:
"There's been less claims from accidental damage while out and about but certainly more use within the home where you might have cups of coffee being spilled over laptops, or tripping over cables and pulling the portable devices off desks.
"Items might be on desks which maybe shouldn't be used as desks or lose cables hanging around. A lot of us working from home have had our children with us as well, so again we've seen some claims relating to children jumping on those devices and causing damage."