With the new academic year about to begin at many universities, students and parents alike will be frantically ticking things off their “To Do” lists. With the high cost of tuition fees and rising costs in practically every aspect of day to day living, it is tempting to see where economies can be made but one thing which should not be compromised is contents insurance.

Student accommodation is often seen as being particularly vulnerable to burglary – valuables such as computers, games consoles, televisions, iPods and stereos combined with flimsy security guarantee rich pickings for the criminally minded – so it is important for parents to ensure that their student children sort out their insurance before starting the new term.

Anyone with Nationwide home insurance will be pleased to learn that this automatically covers their children’s belongings (for loss or damage) whilst away at University, provided they bring all their possessions home with them during the University vacations. An added bonus is the cover provided for music downloaded on to home entertainment systems up to a maximum of £1000.

Students can minimise the likelihood of having to make a claim by:

• Locking doors and windows, even if just nipping across to the kitchen in their halls of residence
• Keeping valuables away from windows so as not to tempt burglars and moving any items which could be damaged before throwing a party
• Marking all valuables with their University name and student ID, helping the police return the goods if recovered and hampering the selling on of stolen goods
• Asking your landlord to provide secure locks

For further advice on avoiding being the one in three students who become a victim of burglary each year, see our Home Insurance website.

With most of us feeling the current economic pinch, it is well worthwhile taking the time to have a look at your home contents insurance policy. Does it provide cover for your mobile phone as a standard feature? If so, you could be throwing money down the drain if you are one of the millions of people in the UK who take out separate cover for their phones, without first checking that they really need it.

We’re not talking peanuts either, with the average cost of a specific mobile phone premium being around £83 a year. That is more than many of the handsets on the market are worth, so even if your home policy does not provide cover, you might like to think of the economics behind forking out so much for a special policy.

If you’re still convinced that you need to sort out mobile phone insurance, it is well worth asking your home contents provider for a quote to add your phone on to your existing policy. In many cases it will be as little as 30p extra each week and many insurance companies provide new for old cover, not just for items stolen from or lost in the home but also anywhere in the world.

If you are accident prone you might also wish to check that your insurance policy covers accidental damage as well as loss or theft. That way, next time you drop your mobile over the side of a boat you won’t be out of pocket!