About half of under 30s do not have home insurance, an untapped area of sales growth for insurers that should be targeted with cheaper, flexible and digital policies, GlobalData says.

The younger “generation rent” home insurance market is ripe for disruption by insurtechs and growth, says a new report from GlobalData, based on a survey in the UK which found 46% of respondents aged 30 or younger had no form of home insurance, compared with 77% uptake across all ages.

Adults aged 18-30 were also particularly likely to purchase home insurance through a price comparison website, with 35% favouring that channel, compared with only a quarter of respondents across all ages.

“This indicates that they are driven heavily by value and look to find as cheap a policy as possible,” analyst Ben Carey-Evans said.

Manageable monthly payments should prove popular with young homeowners who often have stretched budgets and appreciated being able to switch or cancel anytime, he says, a benefit to renters whose living situation can change more quickly.

“The key will be to offer cheap, flexible and digital policies”.