Cottages with thatched roofs, logs crackling in an open fire – it’s the perfect rural idyll, but common sense dictates that they are an explosive (or at any rate combustible) combination. Who in their right mind is going to insure you if you want to sit in your thatched cottage toasting your feet in front of an open fire?

Many insurance companies will not insure thatched properties at all and others make the premiums so high as to put owners off. Norwich Union, for instance, charges 50% extra for contents cover and a staggering 125% extra for buildings cover. They defend their high premiums by explaining that thatched properties are, on the whole, older and more likely to have defective wiring which may cause a fire.

Help is at hand, however, with the NFU Mutual and the Thatched Owners Group, both providing good value cover. For buildings cover, the Thatched Owners Group seems on the whole to be cheaper but the NFU Mutual wins out on contents cover.

It is important to bear in mind that half of the 55,000 thatched properties in England are listed buildings and therefore the cover has to be adequate to have the property restored properly.

Surprisingly, only 1 in 730 thatched properties suffer fire damage each year compared with 1 in 350 conventional tiled properties. This may be down to the fact that if you live in a thatched property you are likely to be very aware of the risks and take extra precautions. That said, if a thatched property does catch fire, the result is likely to be far more rapid, dramatic and damaging than a blaze in any other type of house.

There are various measures which home owners can take to reduce the likelihood of a fire:

• Have your chimney swept regularly – 90% of thatch fires are caused by dirty chimneys.

• Make sure that the top of your chimney stack is at least five feet above the thatched roof so that if sparks escape they will not cause the roof to ignite.

• Have an insulated lining fitted to the part of the chimney stack which passes through the thatched roof.

• Invest in a thermometer for the flue to ensure that the temperature does not reach dangerous levels.

• Have any electrical wires in the roof space checked regularly and watch out for signs of squirrels or mice who may chew through wiring, causing a fire.

• Make sure workmen never use tools such as blow torches in the roof space.

• If you have a wood burning stove have a steel liner fitted and make sure the contractor doing the work has specialist knowledge of thatched properties.

• Have adequate numbers of smoke detectors and fire extinguishers around the house.

• Talk to a qualified thatcher or fire officer for further advice.

It is not of course just fires within the property which can be hazardous to a thatch and care should be taken when lighting a garden fire. Factors such as wind direction and speed should be taken into account and if everything is very dry, you should consider dampening your thatch as well as having a hosepipe which will reach your roof, to limit damage if a fire does start.

As any parent of a student will tell you, there seems to be no end to the personal belongings deemed necessary to make your offspring’s student accommodation a true “home away from home.” As A level results are published and university places confirmed, it is all too easy in the excitement to overlook the thorny question of insuring these belongings. There is also the question of cost. With students nowadays facing more financial pressure than ever before, many may be tempted to think of insurance as a luxury which they cannot afford.

According to research conducted by insurance company, Esure, 80% of students take belongings worth more than £2500 to University, with the average student having over £4000 worth of goodies in their student pad. At the top end, 10% have a staggering £5000 worth or more. It’s easy to explain these statistics – what self-respecting student would be without their top-of-the range mobile, MP3 player and laptop? Then there are the TVs, stereo systems, games consoles, DVD players, musical instruments, designer clothes and jewellery, plus (hopefully!) the odd text book or two.

The 16 to 24-year-old age group is almost three times more likely to fall prey to burglars than the general population, and student houses, often with poor security, are particularly vulnerable. This is compounded by students’ false sense of security in halls of residence with many leaving their doors open when ‘popping out’ for a moment – a gift to the opportunistic thief.

25% of freshers have given no thought to insuring their property and many others believe that they will be covered by their parents’ home contents policy. This may or may not be the case but it is vital that they check before leaving themselves vulnerable. Particular insurance companies which provide cover to students living away from home include NFU Mutual, MORE TH>N and Esure.

MORE TH>N allows parents a set chunk of their own cover to utilise against their student offspring’s belongings (15% up to a maximum of £11,250). They also provide free legal advice, particularly useful should your child come up against an unscrupulous landlord whilst negotiating the minefield of private student accommodation and dodgy leases. For just under £18.50, parents can take out full legal protection with up to £50,000 cover for legal fees and access to useful and professionally written letters, such as a demand for the return of a deposit.

NFU Mutual’s Premium policy covers student belongings up to £5000 and also covers loss during university vacations meaning that your child can leave their belongings in their accommodation if it is available out of term time. Loss from a vehicle is also covered, provided there has been forced entry.

Esure also provides £5000 worth of cover for belongings kept in a locked room. This applies not only to campus accommodation and student houses but also to boarding schools.

As your little darlings head off to university, be aware of all the potential problems and check beforehand. Insurance may seem like something of peripheral interest but it could save you a huge headache in the future.

Gone are the days of children’s school bags containing nothing but a pencil case, a dog-eared exercise book, the packed lunch leftovers and a pair of sweaty trainers. Research carried out by esure Home Insurance has revealed that the average secondary pupil’s school bag contains possessions worth up to £265, with some of the more affluent teenagers having over £1100 worth of belongings with them. Previous research carried out by another insurance company, Churchill, suggested that UK school children, as a whole, frequently have £4.5 billion worth of items with them.

This is hardly surprising when you consider that 60% of children aged 11 to 16 would not dream of going to school without their mobile phone, whilst 30% take an mp3 player to while away the time on the school bus. 17% of 11 to 16-year-olds are no longer happy kicking a football around the playground at break, preferring instead to have their own hand-held games console such as the Play Station Portable costing just short of £100.

9% have waved goodbye to the paper timetable and diary, kitting themselves out instead with electronic organisers, such as the Compaq iPAQ, adding another £75 or so to the total goodies. Add to that the schoolbag itself, watches and other jewellery, designer label trainers and jackets and you can see what a temptation the average child presents for the criminally minded.

However, there are things that can be done to minimise the risk:

• Make sure that bags are not left lying around in the school canteen, changing rooms, at the bus stop, or on public transport etc.
• If your school bag has locks, make sure you use them.
• Avoid flashy phones and other goods which are an even bigger temptation for thieves.
• Be discreet and don’t tempt the unscrupulous by displaying your latest purchase.
• If your school locker is flimsy, use your own padlock.

Parents should ensure that, if the worst comes to the worst, and items are stolen, that they are covered by their home contents policy. It may cost extra to cover items lost or damaged outside the home but it is money well spent, especially if your child is also going away this year on a school trip.