A sparkling insurance bill

I must admit I'm not the biggest fan of bonfire night. Perhaps I'm slightly pessimistic, but maybe it's because I've been burned before.

One piece of advice, though, to any of you enthusiastic amateur pyrotechnic wizards out there: make sure you're well insured. In fact, make sure your neighbours and all around also have some good home insurance policies in place before you start letting rip with bangers, Catherine wheels and sparklers all over the place.

I once decided it might be a nice idea to put on a bonfire night spectacle (or, as I was trying to impress, I was hoping it would be remembered as a bonfire night spectacular) for the new neighbours. Having not long moved in, I was looking to ingratiate myself into the street with a few fireworks and some chestnuts roasted on the open barbecue. And to be fair, quite a few of my neighbours turned up.

What none of them realised, however, was that I had very limited experience with pyrotechnics, with my main qualification to let off powerful explosive devices being that I was capable of lighting a piece of fuse and standing back. Unfortunately, my ability to ensure that all fireworks were pointed in the right direction (that is, up) was sadly wide of the mark.

When I look back, I realise it could have been much worse - I might not be talking now about the importance of home insurance but instead or dental insurance or even life insurance - but fortunately the bangers and rockets hit only bricks and mortar.

But even so, there was some pretty extensive damage, mostly to my own home. I had made sure that I was fully covered on my home insurance beforehand, which meant that I at least felt safe in the knowledge that I would not be facing a huge bill for the damage caused by the fireworks. However, not all of my neighbours had had the forethought to check (understandably perhaps) that they too were covered on their home insurance. That meant things between myself and some of the neighbours got a bit tense when they found out that they weren't covered. It meant things were quickly dumped on my shoulders and relationships quickly cooled (not that they had ever been particularly warm, since the barbecue embers died pretty quickly in the November wind).

So remember remember the fifth of November - home insurance, claims and counterclaims! Even if you're heading to a public event, it doesn't mean that everyone in your neighbourhood will be, so take my advice and ensure that you have adequate home insurance in place.