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Halifax Home Insurance warns of Christmas lights

Fri, 18 Nov 2005

Homeowners are being warned to take out adequate home insurance in time for Christmas after Halifax Home Insurance found electrical fires increase over the festive period.

Research by the insurance provider found electrical fires, many of which were caused by flashing lights, rise by a third over Christmas.

As a result, Halifax Home Insurance is urging Britons to be careful, as these can pose a real fire risk.

Vicky Emmott, senior underwriter at Halifax Home Insurance, said, "Every Christmas we receive thousands of phone calls from customers who have had fire damage to their properties.

"A large proportion of these claims can be attributed to faulty Christmas lights.

"We advise people to check that all Christmas lights meet the relevant British safety standards before putting them up," Ms Emmott said.

Over 5 million people also say that other people’s excessive Christmas lights represent a real fire hazard to their homes. Halifax Home Insurance saw a 33 per cent rise in the number of claims for electrical fires in December compared to the annual average.

Halifax Home Insurance found Brits love Christmas so much, this year in the UK a staggering £600 million will be spent on Christmas decorations. According to conservative estimates, the nation will purchase 89 million metres of fairy lights, 32 million metres of which will be hung outside.