Social media to up premiums

Confused.com is warning people who use social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook could eventually face 10% rises in their home insurance premiums.

The move comes after Dutch-run website PleaseRobMe.com showed how using services such as Twitter, FaceBook, Foursquare and Buzz could let criminals know when a person is not home.

Darren Black, head of home insurance at Confused.com said: "I wouldn't be surprised that as social media grows in popularity and more location-based applications come to fore, insurance providers consider these in their pricing of an individual's risk.” He predicted the rise could be up to 10%.

Criminal intelligence

"Criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their information gathering even using Google earth and street view to plan their burglaries with military precision.

“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.

Confused.com recommended:

• 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 use 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