Facebook, Twitter Users Could Face Insurance Hikes

Twitter and Facebook users could see their home insurance premiums rise by as much as 10 percent in the coming years, says Confused.com, a site that allows users to compare the cost of insurance across different providers.

Confused.com argues that social media services like Foursquare and Buzz can increase the risk of theft by alerting burglars to times when people are out of their homes, thus leading to home insurance hikes.

Confused.com isn't alone in worrying about the 'dark side' of status updates. As we wrote last week, the site 'PleaseRobMe.com' was created to make online tell-alls aware of the risks to publicly sharing their location. The site essentially tells the world when Twitter users aren't at home by aggregating location check-ins posted to the microblogging site.

Darren Black, head of home insurance at Confused.com, explains why he believes social media users could face insurance hikes:

I wouldn't be surprised if, as social media grow in popularity and more location-based applications come to fore, insurance providers consider these in their pricing of an individual's risk. We could see rises of up to 10pc for people who use these sites.

Criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their information gathering, even using Google Earth and Streetview to plan their burglaries with military precision. Insurance providers are starting to take this into account when they are assessing claims and we may in future see insurers declining claims if they believe the customer was negligent.

Although new technology allows for a new level of communication and real-time sleuthing, Waxy (via Digg) points out that in the 1980s, there was a similar fear that home telephones could clue-in burglars to your absence.

A 1983 article in the Montreal Gazette stated:

If you're addicted to Facebook and hooked on Twitter (but worried about paying more), check out Confused.com's tips for staying safe on social networks.

Tell us what you think in the comments below -- will social media users face higher home insurance, or are such fears unwarranted?

Comments

[pmoraga23]

11:44 AM on 02/26/2010

Insurance rates in the United States will not be impacted by consumers putting their informatio­n on social networks. Insurers may caution the practice, but rates would not be raised because of it. In the United States property/c­asualty insurance is regulated at the state level. I know of no state insurance regulation­s that allow hoeowner insurance rates to be raised based on customers' use of social media.

[twninja]

01:01 PM on 02/24/2010

......the . . . . . .

[jrackles95]

10:21 AM on 02/24/2010

wha.......­..........­..........­..........­..........­.........

[ThirdSection]

09:36 AM on 02/24/2010

I've always found this social networking with the constant status updates to be a bit creepy, and now I'm laughing!!­!

[Middle Blue]

08:15 AM on 02/24/2010

I worry about meteorites hitting me in the head every single day.

[nightwind928]

10:02 PM on 02/23/2010

Is it possible?.­..well, yes, but it's right up there with being struck by lightning on a sunny day. If someone wants to know if your home they can just ring the doorbell..­. maybe we better disconnect those too.

[realitytrumpsbull]

09:53 PM on 02/23/2010

One easy answer here is NOT to buy any of their stupid insurance. Besides, it's probably insurance workers turned evil doing all the burglaries to begin with. Don't insurance companies know everything about everybody anyway? And, if there's no one out there stealing stuff, how do you sell insurance against theft? It's like the Brinks home security commercial­. Brinks pays an actor to come throw the brick through the window, motivating YOU to consider buying one of their security systems. But, who gets robbed, to the tune of $50+/mo? You. By who? The 'security' people. Nice little racket, there. And, these insurance companies now operate in over 100 countries. Yessir, quite the moneymaker­, and run by some pretty smart people. But, smart doesn't make you honest.

[kel2]

02:30 PM on 02/23/2010

PUH-LEEZE.

Besides, my very large dogs may beg to disagree.

[Middle Blue]

08:16 AM on 02/24/2010

We have big dogs, too.

Only the UPS guy enters the garage because they know he has treats.

The FedEx guy hasn't figured that one out yet.

[Hypomaniac]

10:11 AM on 02/23/2010

Useless, unsubstant­iated article... unfortunat­ely, one of many!

[My-Two-Cents]

09:50 AM on 02/23/2010

So does this mean I’m going to get a discount if I don’t use FB or Twitter?

Unless they can show a correlatio­n between usage of these sites and an overall increase in home burglary it sounds like just another lame excuse to increase rates.

[Ben Acland]

09:45 AM on 02/23/2010

With the exception of every never-endi­ng evolution flame war going on in every forum ever made, this whole "facebook and twitter will get you robbed" thing is possibly the dumbest conversati­on happening in cyberspace­.

Bloggers, don't be stupid. Put your burgling hat on and imagine yourself, in need of more crack money, plotting to burgle one of your friends. Are you going to trust their facebook status to tell you when the coast is clear? If you answered yes, take off your burgling cap. Give it to me. *SMACK* you're out of the burgling club. If you want to make sure someone isn't at home, my guess is that a much better way is to watch them leave. That's right. Sit outside their house and watch them leave. Too creepy? You're a friggin' burglar! Get over yourself!

Also, what about dogs? What about security systems? What about the big honkin' front gate of the apartment complex and all the cameras? People don't tweet about any of that crap, so without making the drive across town to check it out, no would-be burglar can tell just how much of a pain it's gonna be to get his hands on your family jewels. Yeah, I'm "dr8nk as h3ll and don't know where me keyz is," but my doberman is back at home, drinking tea and polishing his AK, live streaming home videos of his dog friends playing poker in the living room.

Get real.

[Melina M]

01:42 PM on 02/23/2010

You've got a good point. A burglar might be better off doing some good old hard work and staking out a place. The issue is that burglars are not restricted to drug addicts. Some make a living stealing. The threat here is how easy it is to aggregate and know real time if someone is at home or not. Aggregates of real-time personal data just offers up opportunit­y for organized crime. Maybe the whole thing fizzles out and we don't see an increase in anything.

Either way, it's a good idea for folks to add a little note to their "I'm not home" tweets...m­aybe like "but my burglar alarm is." It'd be a little way to tell the whole world to back-off your home, even if you don't have an alarm.

Melina
www.simpli­safe.com

[blaharumph]

09:32 AM on 02/23/2010

i do get irritated at some that have to let us know every time they enjoy a bagel or latte... it seems like they are never home.

[Robert Nix]

09:21 AM on 02/23/2010

I do a lot foFB from my phone. Even when I am home. I'll belive this when we find those WMD's in Iraq.

[lmpub]

09:12 AM on 02/23/2010

There is always a downside to everything­, isn't there?

[Earl]

06:10 AM on 02/23/2010

Why not raise car insurance premiums for people who post photos of themselves getting drunk? Or health insurance premiums for people posting pictures of themselves eating fatty and sugary foods? Or life insurance premiums for people who post photos of themselves bungee jumping?

[drumsgirl]

06:58 AM on 02/23/2010

Actually dangerous extreme activities are considered in life insurance policies. The rest of your statement is apples and oranges. It would comparable to ask if insurance companies are reasonable in denying claims of car theft if you leave the keys in the car.

[Gayle Davis]

08:24 AM on 02/23/2010

What about people who go to work every day? Do they pay more than people who have no jobs? It's even easier to predict when a person will be in and out of the home if they work than it is when they are out Tweeting.

[Suntio]

09:31 AM on 02/23/2010

Please don't give them ideas.