Approximately one in five UK households currently live in private rented accommodation in the UK, equating to 4.5 million families.

GoCompare noted that this could mean more than four million households are not insured.

In comparison, the data found that more than half (56%) of the proportion of GoCompare customers who requested a contents insurance quote were mortgaged homeowners, while 36% of homeowners requiring a quote had already paid off their mortgage.

Ryan Fulthorpe, home insurance expert at GoCompare, said: “We know that the private rental market is growing quickly, and more people are choosing to rent rather than buy homes due to the current surge in house prices, but this data is concerning.

“A lot of those in private rental accommodation are leaving themselves open to being majorly out of pocket should they be burgled or have an accident with one of their high value items.

“Landlords take out insurance to cover the contents of a property, but not a tenant’s property, that is their responsibility.

“It’s worrying to think that so many families living in rented accommodation in the UK are leaving themselves open to losing possibly thousands of pounds if the worst happened, as well as to cover those high value items away from home – as many contents insurance policies offer some form of cover if an item is lost away from the property.”