Spilling the beans on
accidental
damage
The next time you settle
down at your computer with
a cup of tea or relax in your
favourite chair with a glass of
red wine, take care that your
tipple doesn’t turn into an
insurance claim.
the affected area. The salt helps absorb
the stain and can be quickly removed with
a vacuum when you’re ready to treat the
stain.
‘It’s no use crying over spilt milk,’ or so the
saying goes. But what happens if you spill
a cup of coffee over your laptop or drop
a glass or red wine on your expensive
Persian rug?
Claims for accidental damage are some
of the most common claims made under a
home insurance policy and, when it comes
to damage caused by liquids like red wine
or tea, it is carpets, upholstery and electrical
appliances (such as laptops and phones)
that see the most claims for damage.
As an insurer of high value homes and
contents, we have paid out £6.5 million in
claims for accidental damage in 2014, with
mishaps involving drinks accounting for
10% of this type of claim.
According to our claims figures,
homeowners spill eight times as many
glasses of wine than milk over their carpets
and computers. And it’s not just adults who
drop their drinks: in one incident a child
emptied the contents of his potty over a
laptop and, in another; a cat knocked a
glass of water over an iPhone.
Unfortunately, electronic devices and liquids
don’t mix and, amusing as some of these
incidents may sound, being without a
phone or laptop – even for short amount of
time - can be incredibly inconvenient.
If you do take a break from your technology
to enjoy a glass of wine by the fire or
a cup of coffee on the sofa, it’s worth
remembering that spills and stains on
carpets and upholstery are also a common
reason for insurance claims. Top of the list
of tipples which cause the most damage
was red wine, closely followed by coffee,
soft drinks and tea. Carpets and soft
furnishings were the items most commonly
damaged by red wine, accounting for 73%
of claims with laptops accounting for 26%
and phones a mere 1%. Guitar amplifiers,
pianos and items of clothing were also
amongst the items damaged by red wine,
with the most expensive claim costing an
eye-watering £26,000.
As I can testify, accidents will happen!
However, with a little care and forethought,
it is possible to reduce the risk and ensure
you are less likely to find yourself crying
over spilt milk, wine or that well-earned cup
of tea:
Keeping drinks and liquids away from
laptops and not using phones and other
electrical devices whilst in the bath are
obvious precautions to prevent a claim but
even being careful it is likely you will have to
deal with a knocked over glass of red wine
on a carpet at some point or other.
There are lots of myths about stain
removal and particularly the removal
of red wine stains so we took a look at
removeredwinestains.com to see what they
suggest:
First step is always to blot the affected area
with paper towel to soak up as much of
the liquid as possible being careful not to
rub as this could force the stain deeper. If
you haven’t got time to treat the stain then
after you’ve finished blotting, pour salt onto
Home Remedy #1 – Plain soda water,
an ingredient found in many mixed drinks,
is a great home remedy for removing red
wine stains from carpet. The stain removal
property is from the soda’s carbonation
and sodium components. First, apply soda
water to the red wine stain and blot. After
blotting the soda, apply a mixture of lukewarm water and washing up liquid (use only
a small amount of washing up liquid and
be sure it is well diluted) to any remaining
stain. Use a clean cloth to dap the remedy
until stain is removed.
Home Remedy #2 - White wine helps
neutralise red wine stains on carpeting.
Simply pour white wine on top of the red
wine stain and blot. This helps lift the
red wine stain from the carpet and helps
prevent it from spreading. Already polished
off the white wine? Try plain vodka.
A visit to goodhousekeeping.com has a
variation that also includes vinegar:
1. Blot up as much of the spilled wine as
possible.
2. Use plain water or mix one tablespoon of
liquid hand dishwashing detergent and
one tablespoon of white vinegar with two
cups of warm water.
3. Using a clean white cloth, sponge the
stai