When the water in your pipes freezes in cold weather, there is a good chance that one or more of your pipes will crack due to the expansion of the liquid water into ice. When the ice inside these cracked pipes melts, it has an annoying tendency to leak all over your house. If this happens under normal circumstances, you can reasonably expect your home insurance provider to pay for any repairs, although you check the exact terms used in your policy documents before making a claim. Similarly, if any of your assets become flood damaged by a leak of this type, your contents insurance provider should, in theory, foot the bill for replacements.

Your water tank counts as part of the building structure itself, so if this should burst due to cold weather conditions, it is the responsibility of whoever owns the building, or more likely their buildings insurance provider, to pay for any necessary repairs. If your property suffers any damage while you are away for a month or more, you will have to have informed your insurer beforehand of your planned absence and have come to an arrangement with them regarding the insurance of the empty property. Otherwise, you may not be covered by the terms of your buildings or contents insurance policy.

Damage that is caused to properties by icy weather is usually covered by most buildings insurance, although if the problem was caused, or at least abetted, by a pre-existing flaw with your property, such as an insecure roof, you may not turn out to be in line for compensation, as it is the responsibility of the owner of a building to keep it wind and water tight. However, what counts for pre-existing damage in a dispute of this type is less than clear, as the ultimate responsibility may lie with the factor of the building you are staying in, or the construction company that built your home. This is why it's important to keep any receipts pertaining to work done on your property by tradesmen or construction firms.

Confusion can creep in when making insurance claims, especially if there is a third party involved, so it pays to have some help from the legal profession. Many insurance firms offer free legal advice as part of a home insurance plan, and even cover some of the legal costs involved with a dispute. For instance, Co op insurance offer a free legal help line to all of their home insurance customers, and offer up to ?50,000 worth of legal expenses insurance for free, as well as a 1/3 discount on the total bill when you take out one of their buildings insurance policies alongside one of their contents insurance products.