Insurance

With the Easter weekend upon us, many of you may be planning some DIY – maybe your partner is sick of seeing the kitchen or bathroom in a state of ‘near’ completion or perhaps you’re just taking the opportunity of the long weekend to get your house shipshape for the summer ahead. Whatever you’re planning, make sure your good intentions don’t turn your home into a disaster zone. And don’t join the hundreds and thousands of people who end up getting injured this year because their DIY ambitions have gone horribly wrong. The statistics may put you off for a start... According to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA):

• 70 people die each year as a result of DIY accidents;
• 100,000 people visit a casualty department each year with DIY-related injuries;
• 40,000 people go to hospital following accidents related to ladders or stepladders;
• 20,000 accidents are caused by knives and scalpels each year;
• 4,000 people each year report accidents involving paint and paint pots.

Looking at some of the news-worthy DIY accidents of recent years, it’s also fairly obvious that too many people are undertaking DIY with no real idea of what they’re doing. Take the story of Lyn Thomas who, in 2001 severed a gas pipe while laying a patio in his hometown near Swansea. This led to the evacuation of the street while engineers and firemen cut off the gas supply. Only a few hours later, though, Thomas cracked a water main with his spade, flooding his and his neighbour’s gardens. We can safely assume that he was not a terribly popular man about town that day. In another tale, David Brown from Cambridgeshire was reported to have been charged £25,000 by British Telecom when he sliced through an underground cable while building a garden fence.

So what can you do to help ensure your DIY success and safety this weekend? The RoSPA has some top safety tips for all your DIY endeavours:

1. Be realistic: if you’re not sure you have the ability to tackle a job, don’t do it. Get in a professional instead;
2. Keep any tools clean and in good repair;
3. Always plan ahead to avoid accidents when rushed;
4. Stop and disconnect all electrical appliances and tools before working on them;
5. Ensure that all tools, paint and chemicals are kept safely out of the reach of children;
6. Take extra care with sharp cutting tools;
7. Keep children and pets away when carrying out DIY;
8. Keep all products such as paint strippers in their original containers.

If you are undertaking DIY work around the home, you should also check your home insurance policy. As we’ve seen from the accidents above, when things go wrong it may not just be your pride that’s dented. It could also be your wallet. For example, you might actually invalidate your home insurance if you undertake a DIY project that you are not qualified to manage – electrical wiring or plumbing jobs are obvious areas you should avoid unless you’re a professional. Most home insurance policies cover accidental damage to sinks, baths, ceramic hobs or glass in doors, but will not cover common DIY disasters like drilling into a water pipe or putting your foot through the ceiling. If you are likely to be doing a lot of DIY in the weeks/months ahead, you may be able to get additional accidental damage cover; just ensure you talk to your home insurance provider before you make a start on that major DIY project. If you read your policy and find you’re not happy with the level of cover it is offering, there are also plenty of other home insurance providers to choose from – just take a look at BeatThatQuote.com for a whole range of policies.

And, just remember, that if it does go wrong, there is one key advantage. Your partner may never ask you to do the DIY again.