Regal Insurance Encourages Christmas Shoppers to Take Sensible Steps to Protect Their Purchases

MANCHESTER, England, Oct. 12 /PRNewswire/ --High-value home contents insurance specialists Regal Insurance is encouraging homeowners to take sensible steps to protect their purchases once they begin Christmas shopping this year. According to a recent Retail Eyes survey, 23 per cent of UK shoppers will start their Christmas shopping in October, leading to a surplus of expensive items left around UK homes for over two months.

The festive season is often a costly time for many; Christmas presents alone can end up costing hundreds -- if not thousands -- of pounds. Electronic toys, televisions and other gadgets are high on the list of expenses, but lots of the little items add up fast, and can quickly cause seasonal spending to snowball.

Andy Leggett, Online Marketing Manager at Regal Insurance, is not surprised at the amount of people choosing to do their Christmas shopping early. He said: "Seeing surprised and delighted faces, both young and old, is one of the highlights of Christmas. Stock availability is often a problem during this season, so it is easy to understand why many people choose to buy their presents early, especially if they are tasked with buying a particular toy."

Already tipped to be a top seller this year is the 36-40 pounds Sterling Buzz Lightyear action figure from Toy Story 3. According to Sky News, other products due to go down a storm include the 110 pounds Sylvanian Families Regency Hotel, 60 pounds Lego City Fire Station, and the 40 pounds Scalextric Micro Maximum Mayhem.

Leggett added: "Toys seem to be getting more expensive each year, but that doesn't stop us from buying them. In fact, it is because of this that homeowners in the UK should be protective of the presents hidden in their house prior to Christmas morning. Hiding them from your children is one thing, but with such a high value, these gifts should also be hidden away from the prying eyes of outsiders to the home."

Regal Insurance suggests taking a few sensible steps to take after purchasing Christmas presents, if they are to be kept within the home. Common measures include:

• Taking out a home contents insurance policy, or updating an existing policy, to cover new purchases.
• Storing presents out of sight from windows and doors
• Hiding keys away from windows and doors
• Leaving the lights on when going out for the evening

"Ensuring you have adequate home contents insurance is a wise move, especially throughout the festive season. Burglars know that you may have extra gifts and gadgets dotted around the home, which essentially equates to a prime target for theft. Christmas is expensive enough without having to dole out to replace all of the presents you've already bought once before."

"Regal Insurance will automatically increase contents insurance policies for the Christmas period, allowing you to get the appropriate level of cover for your gifts and goodies. However, it is best to read your policy to find out how many days this cover is provided for, and the maximum value of the cover."

To talk to a member of the Regal team today and get a quote with no obligation, call 0800 519 10 22, or visit the website at http://www.regalinsurance.co.uk/.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

Regal Insurance will automatically increase the contents sum insured for gifts, food, and provisions during the period 30 days before and 30 days after a recognised religious festival, in both platinum and gold policies.

FURTHER NOTES FOR EDITORS

Regal is a specialist provider of high-value home insurance that provides cover for low-risk customers and in doing so is able to negotiate lower premiums with a selected group of insurers which include AXA, Royal & SunAlliance and Brit.

Regal is part of Castle Cover, the 50+ insurance specialists, which now has over 290,000 policy holders. Regal was introduced to combine high-quality service and competitive premiums for people who need more than the standard levels of cover provided by many insurance companies.

SOURCE Regal Insurance