Every minute of every day, six homes could fall victim to burglary, fire, flood or accidental damage, claims a home insurer.

Figures from Churchill found that the average householder will face some sort of loss or damage to their property every seven years and nine months, translating to as much as six times in a lifetime.

The most frequent claim is for accidental damage such as spilling food or drink on carpets and sofas, damage to TVs or entertainment equipment or DIY accidents such as drilling through a cable or water pipe.

Some homes will be the victim of extreme and costly disasters including ten per cent that will suffer fire, six per cent affected by subsidence and three per cent who will experience flood damage.

"Whilst the smaller household accidents are inconveniences which affect us all, a number of householders will suffer a major disaster and the effects could be devastating," said Martin Scott, head of home insurance at Churchill.

"Householders without the reassurance of home insurance can spend years rebuilding their lives should such disasters occur."