Comedian and actor Ellie Taylor has sat down for a storytime with a twist – as the classic tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears has been reimagined to include smart home technology.
The mum of one was filmed reading the updated, modern version of the fairytale – in which Goldilocks gets caught red-handed via a live-stream on an indoor security camera in the bears' home.
And other children's stories that have been amended to highlight the benefits of smart tech include Jack in the Beanstalk, and Rapunzel – in which the long-haired title character suffers a bathroom leak, which is fixed by a heroic tradesman in a shining boiler suit.
The unconventional stories come as a poll of 2,000 adults found that over a quarter (27%) say they would feel less anxious about home security if they had smart tech – such as a doorbell system, water leak detectors, and CCTV both indoors and outdoors.
Water leaks, fire damage, and burglary, are some of the top issues they worry about when it comes to security at home – but just 15% realise that issues such as accidental damage could be prevented with some additional tech.
The research, as well as the book of reimagined fairy tales, was commissioned by Sky Protect, a smart home protection service offering comprehensive home insurance and smart home tech that work together in one app.
Ellie Taylor, comedian, actor, and best-selling author, said: “Let’s be honest, insurance is traditionally pretty dull – so it’s been nice injecting a bit of fun into the topic of home insurance.
“When you think about the things that are most important in your life, you start to realise how important it is to have effective home protection in place.”
The study also revealed adults blame themselves as the biggest cause of home disasters, followed by mischievous pets and children's misadventures.
Homeowners have typically spent £255 in the past five years on repairing or replacing things due to damage – which could have been saved by technology.
It also emerged 21% admitted they didn’t read any of the T&Cs from their home insurance provider when signing on the dotted line – and 27% don’t know how to make a claim on their current home insurance policy.
Despite this, 48% rank their home and belongings among their top priorities in life – above wealth and career, according to the OnePoll.com figures.
However, homeowners admit to spending more time researching a mobile phone upgrade (three hours), or new furniture (five hours), than their home insurance (two hours).
Of those who have had damage to the home, but didn’t end up claiming on their home insurance, 42% didn’t think it was worth their time or effort – while 20% weren’t sure what they were actually covered for.
Home insurance also topped a list of the most boring things to talk about with other people – ahead of diets, traffic, and the weather.
Matt Poll, managing director at Sky Protect, said: “Our research underlines the concerns that many people have about keeping their home and belongings safe.
“There’s plenty that can go wrong, from pipes bursting to pets chewing up the sofa – and the sooner you can get a handle on it, the better.
“The results also highlight how millions of people across the country are totally disillusioned with their current home insurance.
“We want to get people reengaged, so we’ve used innovative tech to develop a service that customers can benefit from every single day.”
