New research carried out by Halifax Home Insurance suggests that Monday morning is the worst day of the week for having accidents – and hangovers are being blamed.

Halifax released its claims data for the previous three years, and the results were enlightening. Comparing the number of claims made on each day of the week, it discovered that 32% more accidents occur on a Monday morning than on any other weekday.

It’s easy to see how this is possible. A heavy weekend followed by the need to get up early can easily lead to the odd mistake on our way to work.

The types of accidents that we tend to have were also very revealing. The most common claims that are made on a Monday morning include starting a fire with hair straighteners, letting the bath overflow, and spilling hot drinks on laptops and TVs.

The research also showed that Yorkshire was the worst place for Monday claims, with London and Central Scotland following close behind. Whether that means more people go out and have a good weekend in these places is unclear. The Northwest, on the other hand, made the lowest number of Monday claims.

Mondays are also the worst days for clumsiness. More claims were made for things such as dropping expensive gadgets like iPods into the toilet and running into glass doors.

Psychologist Glenn Wilson said that people have a good time at the weekend “to escape the pressure of work”, but that this means Mondays are “marked by low performance and inattentiveness” as we try to recover.

The senior claims manager at Halifax said that the company was now urging people to take special care on Mondays to try to avoid accidents that could lead to a claim.

Student cyclists are increasingly likely to become the victims of bike theft, according to new research carried out by M&S Home Insurance. After polling 2,000 student bike owners, the company discovered that nearly a quarter of them had had their bikes stolen whilst at university.

This huge percentage is worrying for the thousands of students who rely on their bikes to get around campus. Compared to cars, bikes are cheap and easy to run. But a high-end model can still cost thousands of pounds. This fact, together with their portability, makes bikes an attractive proposition for thieves, who often take advantage of the lack of security measures implemented by students.

The research seemed to be backed up by statistics from the British Crime Survey, which showed that 540,000 bicycles were stolen during 2008-09, a 22% increase from the previous results.

Despite the new statistics, the M&S research also found that only 16% of students took out insurance for possessions whilst staying in student accommodation. Although their parents’ home insurance can sometimes cover personal property whilst at university, this is not always the case and students should check carefully first. The research revealed that 14% of students had been burgled whilst at university, making adequate insurance more important than ever.

Steve Price, the head of general insurance at M&S, said that “bikes are a prime target for thieves”, and that “cyclists should take basic security steps” in order to prevent themselves becoming victims. These included registering the model and the frame number, storing the bike in a garage and using a good bike lock.

If you’ve been thinking about purchasing a home insurance policy, now could be a great time to do so. Nationwide Insurance has just released details of a new special offer that gives new customers a massive 20% off the price of their premium.

The 20% discount is available to new customers who purchase their building and contents insurance together in one package. Nationwide will provide them with 20% off the initial premium for the first year, followed by an extra 20% off the following year’s premium when the policy is renewed.

This could lead to massive savings, and has come along at just the right time for recession-hit customers who are cutting back on their expenses.

As an extra bonus, if new home insurance buyers hold their main current account with Nationwide then they can get a further £20 off the premium for the first year. This is only available via applications made over the phone or in a Nationwide branch. However, if done over the internet, they will be able to take advantage of a 10% discount.

Robin Bailey, Nationwide’s insurance director, said that although the price was sure to catch the eye, the level of cover is also important when taking out an insurance policy. He said that Nationwide customers will “benefit from discounts this year and next, as well as independently acclaimed cover and service”.

Some of the main features of the insurance policy include unlimited building cover, temporary housing, £1,000 garden contents, direct debit payments at no extra charge and belongings cover for students. The offer will be running from September 1, 2009 to January 3, 2010.

With continuing economic uncertainty, financial services are continually having to think outside the box to reel in increasingly sceptical and cautious customers. And so in the past year, we have seen no end of creative financial solutions for assets from property to cars and businesses. It is a little surprising therefore that ‘salary gap insurance’ has taken so long to arrive.

Not to be mistaken for ‘redundancy insurance’ which comes into effect as soon an employee loses his or her job and allows them to maintain an income whilst looking for new work, ‘salary gap insurance’, soon to be launched by Salisbury Underwriting Services, covers the difference between the new salary and the old salary as soon as a new job is obtained.

It is therefore appealing to a number of potential demographics in these shaky economic times. The double-barrelled burden of redundancy means that not only do people face the struggle of finding work, but as their bills and outgoings are calculated against their salary, they cannot afford to take a new position which would pay less. Salary gap insurance offers relief from this and it is primarily this clientele the product is aimed at.

However, salary gap insurance would also be of interest to people who are thinking of making a career change, but have previously felt that it was financially prohibitive. As Bill Graham of SUS says, "they can flip burgers one day a week as long as they have a contract of employment".

SUS plan to offer the service in the UK as of September 2009; it will be available through the broker Tobell.