Insuring laptops and gadgets for students

Students take a laptop, smartphone, games consoles, gadgets and bikes worth an average £2,000 with them to university.

At least triple that if for a shared house and it’s easy to see why thieves and burglars find students rich pickings at the start of term.

The figures come from student insurers Endsleigh and the Post Office.

Both say doing without student insurance is a false economy as many of the gadgets, plus work and downloads stored on them, would be expensive to replace if stolen.

To help out, the Insurance Blogger has put together 10 insurance tips for students:

●     Lock up your valuables. That includes your bedroom if your housemates have visitors. Many insurers won’t pay out if you do not have the right type of locks on windows and doors – and especially if you don’t bother to use them.

●     Keep cash, bank cards and valuables out of sight

●     Take out insurance sooner rather than later. Most university thefts take place at the start of term. It’s darker, so thieves can sneak about and new students still have to get to know each other, making it easier for thieves to blend in

●     Find out what the policy covers – and what it doesn’t.

●     Jot down the make, serial number and cost of your valuables, so if something does go missing you can tell the police and make a claim

●     If your landlord offers insurance as part of the rental deal, check the policy covers your needs

●     Mark your valuables with a postcode on the back or bottom – make it obvious as a deterrent to thieves so they can see they can’t sell stuff on

●     You’re more likely to lose your gear or have something stolen while you are out and about, so make sure your insurance includes ‘away from home’ cover

●     Put valuables in to storage or take them home during the holidays

●     Back up and password protect digital files and work to the cloud, so if your laptop or phone is stolen, you can easily access your information from another gadget

Check out specialist cover for laptops, phones and iPads, because they may offer quicker replacement rather than repair of damaged items – and the insurance will pay for unauthorised calls on your mobile providing you report any loss within a time limit of a couple of hours.