Categories: News

Hefty insurance bills add to back to school costs

<h3>The increasing demand for students to use expensive technology is pushing up insurance costs for families&period;<&sol;h3>&NewLine;<p>According to insurance company AMI&comma; 73 per cent of school students in New Zealand carry a smart phone&comma; 27 per cent carry a laptop&comma; 24 per cent carry a tablet computer&comma; 15 per cent carry an MP3 player&comma; and 4 per cent wear a smart watch&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>A far cry from even 10 years ago when students&&num;8217&semi; big-ticket items were limited to scientific calculators and expensive running shoes&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>AMI&&num;8217&semi;s general manager&comma; claims&comma; Ruth Colenso said theft or loss of small&comma; high value technology is an increasing issue for insurers and is reminding parents to ensure these valuables are protected when taken outside the home&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;Technology is more and more a central part of the classroom and how we communicate with family and friends&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;Students can find themselves in situations or locations where their items or backpack may be lost or stolen&comma; or damaged by accident&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;When you think about the cost of replacing these technology items&comma; parents could be up for hundreds&comma; if not thousands&comma; of dollars&period;&&num;8221&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Leaking drink bottles&comma; accidental drops&comma; theft and backpacks being run over are just some of the ways school student&&num;8217&semi;s technology has been lost or damaged in the past year&comma; according to claims data from AMI&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>More than 38 per cent of respondents also indicated students are walking around with more than one technical device&comma; making school backpacks a potential treasure trove for thieves&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;With the demand for students to have access to personal technology increasing we would encourage parents to make sure it&&num;8217&semi;s protected should the worst happen&comma;&&num;8221&semi; Ms Colenso said&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>AMI Insurance recommends customers check with their insurer to see whether they have cover under their home contents insurance for valuable items taken outside of the home&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;

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