The 12 risks of Christmas: How to protect your home and valuables this festive season

During the festive season, homes are often busier, which can increase the risk of accidental damage. Typical accidental damage claims include spillages on carpets, broken tableware, and furniture damage.

• Check your cover: Most All Risks policies include accidental damage cover as standard. However, if you have a Perils-based policy, consider adding Accidental Damage as an optional extra.
• Know the difference: Perils-based policies are generally more restrictive in cover compared to ‘All Risks’ Understanding the difference can help you choose the right cover.

For more information read our article: All Risks vs Perils based cover

Christmas should be a time for celebration - not for opportunistic burglars. Unfortunately, the festive season often brings increased risk, especially for high-value homes. While standard home security advice is widely known, there are additional steps that can make a real difference.

• Review your digital footprint: Burglars are increasingly using open source information (publicly available online data) to identify and target properties. This includes property listings, photographs, and even floorplans that reveal entry points and layouts. Take a few minutes to Google your address and review property websites. For more advice read out article: Intelligent Security – strengthening protection for high value homes
• Check your alarm system: BT Redcare announced the closure of its service, with an extended deadline of 15th December 2025. If your alarm uses a landline for monitoring, you should have switched to a digital system, with a new provider. Either CSL or AddSecure. If not, contact your provider immediately. For more information on this switch read our article: BT Redcare – important information
• Secure your home safe: Over recent years, we’ve seen a rise in safes being stolen along with their contents. Always have your safe installed by a professional safe company and consider upgrading to a minimum of an EN1141-1 Grade 1 safe. This future-proofs against new jewellery purchases or festive gifts and may even reduce your premium when combined with a floating limit.

High-value cars are a prime target for thieves, with most modern vehicles now featuring keyless entry, keyless car theft is on the rise. To reduce risk:

• Store keys securely: Keep them away from doors and windows, and never leave them in sight.
• Use a signal-blocking pouch or box: These prevent criminals from intercepting your key’s signal.
• Add physical deterrents: Steering wheel locks and secure garage parking can make a big difference.
• Install a tracking device: Tracking devices use real-time GPS location reporting to pinpoint the exact location of a vehicle. The functions and features are geared towards an instant response to theft and a fast recovery. For more information read our article: The best trackers for your vehicle

For more advice read our article: Car Insurance and vehicle security

Fine jewellery is delicate, with tiny clasps and intricate settings that keep stones secure. If you’re taking pieces out of the safe for an event, check clasps and settings first.

Our recommendations

• Take your jewellery to be checked by a specialist jeweller every twelve months. For more advice, read our article: Looking after your jewellery: cleaning tricks to storage tips
• With price of gold hitting all-time highs, get a professional valuation so you don’t find yourself underinsured in the event of a claim. You can read more about this in our article: Why it’s still the time to check the value of your gold
• Read your policy to ensure that you comply with valuation requirements and clasp & settings checks. Many policies require both to be undertaken regularly.

The festive season brings extra fire hazards into the home. Common risks include:

• Candles
• Portable heaters
• Open fires and wood stoves
• Christmas tree lights
• Overloaded sockets

Even less obvious hazards can cause serious damage. For example, sunlight reflecting off glass ornaments or mirrors can ignite fires - one incident caused over £90,000 worth of damage for one of our clients.

Don’t forget lithium batteries. They’re common in modern devices but can catch fire if damaged or improperly charged. Learn more: Lithium batteries and home insurance. 

Finally, check your smoke and fire detection system. Even if your insurer’s standards are met, you may wish to upgrade your home’s smoke detection - or at the very least, check that your current system is working as it should.

A white Christmas may look idyllic, but freezing pipes can lead to costly damage. The ABI said damage and disruption from frozen and burst pipes can be significant, with it highlighting that insurers settled roughly 12,000 weather-related claims for burst pipes in 2023. The trade body also revealed that the average claim for this type of incident exceeded £17,0001. Reduce the risk by:

• Servicing your boiler
• Insulating exposed pipes
• Keeping heating on low to maintain water temperature

Taking these precautions will help to protect your home during the festive season and beyond.

Not every Christmas is a white Christmas. If the Met Office issues a warning for heavy rains and flooding in your area, make sure you are prepared. While you can never completely eliminate the risk of flooding, you can take steps to reduce the risk of water getting into your property and minimise the damage if it does make it over the threshold.

These methods are known as ‘flood resistance’ and ‘flood resilience’, and implementing them can help you manage the risk of your property being damaged. You can read more about this in our article on Flood Risk.

Over 25% of the claims we see are due to escape of water and there’s a spike in escape of water claims during the winter months*. If you have a small undetected leak it could turn into something bigger.

Water leaks can cause thousands of pounds worth of damage and properties can take months to dry out before repairs can be completed. Acting quickly when you discover a water leak can mean the difference between a small clean-up job or extensive damage and inconvenience. For more advice read our article: Escape of water and the winter months

During the festive season, the value of your home’s contents often peaks - thanks to decorations, fine wine, and gifts under the tree. If your policy doesn’t account for this, you could be underinsured.

Some high-net-worth policies include Religious Festival cover, which automatically increases your contents sum insured during the holidays to protect seasonal purchases and luxury gifts.

For more advice on contents underinsurance in general, read our article: Contents underinsurance

Christmas can be a great time of the year to get away. If you’re going on an extended break and your home will be unattended for more than 30 days, you may need to tell your insurer, as many policies will include an unoccupancy condition.

We can access short-term (and long-term) unoccupied property insurance, so if you’re planning an extended holiday and want to make sure that you have the right level of cover in place, please contact us.

Whether you’re buying presents for loved ones in the run up to Christmas or spending gift tokens received, the likelihood is that some of us will be spending money online. Protecting our information and privacy is just as important as protecting our homes.

Steps to take to protect yourself include:

• Using unique passwords
• Installing up-to-date security software
• Backing up work and files

Even the most tech-savvy people can get caught out – which is why we recommend that our clients consider personal cyber insurance.

When it comes to that extra special gift – whether it’s a diamond necklace or a Patek Philippe watch – one of the most important things to do is to let your insurer or insurance broker know.

When it comes to insuring high-value items being specific matters. Many policyholders assume their valuables are covered, but without specifying key items you could be left out of pocket in the event of a claim. You can read more about that here: Protecting your valuables: why it pays to be specific

If you’re unsure about your cover or want to review your protection, speak to Howden Private Client today. We’ll help you protect your home and valuables this festive season.

As you prepare to celebrate the festive season, taking a few simple precautions can make all the difference. From protecting your home and valuables to staying alert to digital risks, being proactive helps ensure that your holidays remain joyful and stress-free. If you’re unsure whether your current cover meets your needs and you’d like to review your policies, speak to the Howden private client team on 0208 25 48001 or email privateclients@howdeninsurance.co.uk

We wish you a safe and Merry Christmas!