Teenage Parties not Always Covered by Home Insurance

It is something you might see on the plot of Eastenders of Coronation Street, but some people actually have to live the nightmare of seeing their home wrecked during a teenage party. This is exactly what happened to the parents of Sarah Ruscoe in Devon recently.

The teenager plastered her school with “all welcome” posters, this phrase was taken literally and the party was even mentioned on Radio 1, due to this 2,000 gatecrashers turned up at the party and the house was left in ruins when the revellers left.

However your home insurance policy may not be willing to pay out if your home is damaged during a party thrown by your children. There are clauses in most home cover which can mean that if your property and possessions are damaged you are not covered.

Many insurers will not pay out for the irresponsibility of yourself or your child.

In this case the irresponsibility includes advertising the party on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace and inviting more guests than could possibly fit into your house.

Whether or not your insurer will pay out for the damage depends on the level of care you have taken. Allowing a teenager to throw a party while you are away could result in your insurer deeming you have failed to take adequate care of your property.

If the party is thrown without you knowing and without your consent it is likely you will be covered for any damage. The fact that the party was advertised across the internet will not go in your favour though and it is likely the payout will not come to fruition due to recklessness. Effectively your child is inviting strangers into your home.

An Esure spokeswoman, Niki Bolton, said: “Friends and family will take due care in your home. People who don't know you have no reason to be careful or treat your property as if it were their own. House party guests must be known to you - they cannot be random people off the street.”

Buildings and contents insurance policies cover malicious acts, but according to the Association of British Insurers there is often a clause in place stating that the policyholder must take reasonable care to prevent damage. Spokesman Malcolm Tarling said: “The problem is that there is no hard and fast ruling. It really would depend on the individual insurer.”

Some insurers will state that the malicious acts cover only applied to damage caused by strangers. Insurers will also often recommend taking out extra accidental damage cover, which can increase premiums by up to 50%. However, this type of cover only applies to damage caused by friends and family and not if guests appear with the intention of causing damage.

Accidental damage is an ambiguous statement but generally applies to breaking a light-shade from doing exercise indoors, not to pre-planned events like large house parties where damage is extremely likely.

The Financial Obudsman Service, an independent complaint handler has warned that people cannot count on all policies giving the same levels of cover, it is important to check the small print. Spokewoman Emma Parker said: “Without seeing individual facts, it would be hard for us to make a judgment on a claim because the wording in policies can differ widely.”