Zurich reminder to homeworkers

by Gill Montia

Story link: Zurich reminder to homeworkers

Zurich is reminding homeworkers to check out their insurance to make sure the “office at home” is covered.

The insurer has published the results of a survey indicating a steady rise in the numbers of people working from home.

Nearly 30% of the respondents estimated that they are based at home for around 10% of each working month, equating to 15.73 hours.

One in ten of this group completed 40 working hours each month at home, and nearly one in twenty spent over 80 hours working from home.

Reasons for preferring homeworking include: avoiding the commute to and from work (66%); gaining peace and quiet from colleagues (55%); being less bothered by distractions (46%) and choosing the time at which to work (50%).

A third of those questioned expect to spend even more time working away from the office in the coming year and by August 2008, the average hours worked from home is expected to rise to around 26 per month.

The trend means that many workers are investing in new office equipment in the home, with the average replacement value of such items estimated at £1,140.93.

According to Zurich 12% of homeworkers fail include the equipment on their home contents insurance.

Mark Searles, Zurich’s Managing Director, Retail recommends that “those who have invested in their home office need to safeguard their working arrangements, should the worst happen. Making sure that office equipment is adequately insured as part of a home contents policy is crucial for those who rely on home computers and other technical equipment for work purposes.”