St Albans residents’ home insurance policies have risen well above the national average rate over the last three years.

According to MoneySuperMarket, the UK average cost of home insurance has increased by 27 per cent (£31) to £144 since 2017, compared to a 42 per cent (£55) lift in St Albans to £185.

The price comparison website looked at millions of its combined contents and home insurance quotes UK-wide, and found that customers in the AL postcode were paying an average of £185 in the first quarter of 2020, up from £130 during the same period three years ago.

In addition to St Albans and surrounding villages, the AL postcode also covers Harpenden, Hatfield, Welwyn Garden City and Welwyn.

It’s expected that the COVID-19 lockdown will have an impact on home insurance premiums - though exactly how remains to be seen.

Kate Devine, head of home insurance at MoneySuperMarket noted that any reduction in burglary rates due to homes being occupied is likely to be balanced out by an increase in accidental damage thanks to a spike in DIY.

“The COVID-19 lockdown will likely have had an impact on home insurance prices this year,” she said. “In the short term, this may mean that the difficulty in hiring professional tradespeople could heighten the risk of accidental DIY damage and result in higher claims, but also that the lower risk of burglary due to more people staying home could be a factor.”

And while it was “reassuring” that the UK’s annual increase in home insurance costs had slowed to less than 3 per cent at the beginning of 2020, Kate noted that “some areas of the country do seem to be seeing increases at a higher rate than the average”.