Facebook will raise premiums

Confused.com says people who use social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook could face hikes in their home insurance premiums.

The move comes after a burglary ring in Nashua, New Hampshire, targeted people who checked into places on Facebook, alerting them when they were not home. The police caught them after they broke into 50 homes and stole $100,000 worth of goods.

US fears

Gareth Kloet, head of home insurance at Confused.com said: "What's happened in the US could be the start of a worrying trend and if insurance providers see it as a potential risk, you can bet your home contents on the fact they'll start pricing for it.

“Something like ‘Places' on Facebook broadcasts people's locations on a platform that has 500 million users - you don't need to be an insurance provider to see the risk that poses. I wouldn't be surprised if we see rises of up to 10% for social media users in the future.

"Criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their information gathering even using Google Earth and Street View to plan their burglaries with military precision.

Premiums will rise

“Insurance providers are starting to take this into account when they are assessing claims and we may in future see insurers declining claims if they believe the customer was negligent.

"We would always recommend that our customers have adequate security and insurance in place to protect them should the worst happen, however they need to be aware that home security doesn't just mean physical locks."

Confused.com recommends:

• Never post your home address or other personal information such as your home phone number on social networking sites
• Don't follow people you don't know on social networks and block others from seeing your profile if you don't know them
• Turn off location-based services on Twitter and Facebook unless you absolutely need to use them