Scottish renovators 'account for fewer DIY disasters'

Househunters hoping to buy a house in Scotland may be interested to learn that Scottish homeowners cause the least amount of damage to their neighbour’s property through DIY attempts in the UK.

New research undertaken by HBOS has found that nearly 600,000 Britons have their property damaged as a result of a neighbour’s renovation projects, with an average cost of £291.

In comparison, Scottish property owners have mounted up an average of £817 in repair costs, however the country accounts for only 11 per cent of recorded incidents, meaning that proportionally Scots do less damage.

Home improvement disasters have led to burst pipes, knocked down walls and broken ornaments, the company records.

David Rochester, head of underwriting at Halifax Home Insurance, commented: "A number of errant DIYers are not just damaging their properties, but their neighbours’ homes too.

"But … so many victims handle the situation with typically British aplomb. Indeed, over two-thirds of them chose to pay towards the cost of repairing their home – rather than create a fuss."

UK homes are vulnerable to the weather as well as DIY misdemeanours, Halifax has claimed, stating that over 1.5 million British homes were damaged by high winds in 2007.