The festive season is unfortunately a season of joy for criminals and thanks to load shedding Apps, it’s likely burglars now know exactly when power cuts will occur in your suburb or town.
This begs the question: do you know what your insurance policy covers with regards to load shedding risks?
Power cuts don’t just cause inconveniences, they provide an opportunity for criminals to pounce when the lights go out, so it’s wise to ensure that your alarm system has a working back-up battery if you’re planning to leave your home unattended while you’re on holiday.
If you submit a claim following a load-shedding burglary, you’ll be required to prove that your alarm was functioning properly at the time of the incident. If you can’t, your claim could be rejected.
We suggest you contact your alarm company to ask about what back-up measures they have in place during load shedding and to get them to test and service your entire alarm system before you leave.
Load shedding can also seriously damage your appliances. Power surges can, for example, trigger electrical fires if your appliances are left on during load shedding.
Household contents policies generally provide cover for damage to electrical equipment and appliances due to lightening, but damage caused by power surges may not be covered.
We suggest you install surge protectors to help stop the sudden flow of energy when the power goes back on. You should also unplug all your appliances before load shedding occurs and have a fire extinguisher on hand should an electrical fire suddenly break out.
There’s also a higher risk of accidents at intersections and dark roads during load shedding.
Your car insurance should protect you from financial loss and allow you to fulfill your obligations to the other party, should you be responsible for causing the accident.
We suggest you also be extra vigilant when arriving or leaving your home in the evenings and that you keep a torch in your car should you need to open your perimeter security gate manually.
There’s a strong possibility there’ll be continued load shedding during the next few weeks so we urge you to contact us on 044 382 0550 today so we can check what your policy does and doesn’t cover before you head out on your annual break.
