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Owners pay the price for DIY money saving efforts

Owners pay the price for DIY money saving efforts

Tuesday, 6 December 2011 12:20 PM

Thrifty British property owners are turning their hand to home improvements but some projects are ending in DIY disasters and home insurance claims, according to a survey by Confused.com.

The price comparison website said 53 per cent of owners are doing their own improvements due to an increase in living costs but 11 per cent of those who do it themselves are then claiming on their insurance.

Owners in Scotland and the West Midlands are most likely to do their own work and those in the North East the least likely.

However, success rates varied from 50 per cent who claimed to have done a successful job in Northern Ireland to just 26 per cent in Wales.

Almost a third (31 per cent) of those who had done their own work admitted to DIY mishaps, with disasters resulting in insurance claims most common in Scotland and Wales.

Mark Gabriel, Confused.com home insurance, said: "People have turned to ways of saving money and have been inspired by home improvement programs.

"However it is important to remember that television often makes tasks look easier than they are.

"In fact, some home insurance policies stipulate that only professionally accredited tradesmen should carry out certain work, so it is worth checking that you are not inadvertently rendering your insurance invalid by failing to read the small print."

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