Domestic fires surge amid increased demand for ‘shoffices’

Domestic blazes rose by 16 per cent last year, figures suggest

A fireman attempts to stop a house from burning down (file photo) (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Are you lucky enough to have a garden? Then perhaps you were among a growing number of Britons who bought an outhouse for homeworking or a pizza oven for quick dinners during the Covid lockdowns.

But be warned: "shoffices" and other structures don't come risk free, as evidenced by new figures from the insurance company Zurich, which show claims for outbuilding fires rose by nearly 16 per cent last year, compared with 2019.

"Aside from storing gardening tools, our sheds and garages have become a haven to escape the stresses of family life and for others, a place to work," Zurich's Phil Ost said.

"But as they take refuge in their garden sheds and garages, it appears to have sparked a rise in accidental blazes."

The pandemic has seen a shift in the number of people working from home, a trend that appears to be here to stay as employees enjoy a better work/life balance.

As a result of the shift sales of sheds for working - branded "shoffices" have increased, with some spending vast sums on luxury cabins.

According to an April survey by Aviva, also an insurer, one in 10 people work from a converted shed, garage or summer house - a trend that experts warned at the time could increase fire hazards, which appears to have been borne out in the Zurich data.

Warnings have also been issued to people moving property and belongings to storage units to make space for home working.

Stuart Bensusan, an insurance specialist with Surewise, urged consumers to properly evaluate the risks with such premises.

"It highlights the importance of thoroughly vetting any storage facility you use and taking the necessary steps to protect your possessions while they are in it," he said.

"Many consumers have complete faith in storage units, and unfortunately it simply never crosses their minds that something might happen to their unit, or the whole building.

"This leads to many customers being under-insured or worse having no insurance cover at all."