Consumers looking to rein in their spending as part of debt management plans must not cancel important insurance policies, one expert warns.

As the recession takes hold, many Britons are cutting their insurance protection in a bid to save money, states Graeme Trudgill, technical and corporate affairs executive at the British Insurance Brokers’ Association (Biba).

He urges consumers not to just automatically renew policies without comparing several quotes but also suggests they should not just cancel altogether.

"Think about what is nice to have, what insurance would be good to have, look at your budget and then speak to your insurance broker and they can point out the important things that you do need to have," Mr Trudgill advises.

He points out that policies such as motor insurance are legally required, while buildings insurance often comes as part of a mortgage deal, so these are two which will be kept when working out debt management plans.

Worryingly however, Biba figures show that 96 per cent of insurance brokers say motor and home insurance are the products most affected by the recession.