Thousands of people go on house swap holidays every year, attracted by the free accommodation and the chance to experience a country from a local's point-of-view.
Whether your dream holiday property is a villa in the Caribbean, a swanky apartment in New York, or a beach house in Australia, you are likely to find it listed on one of the many home exchange clubs on the internet.
You make contact with the owner, and, assuming they fancy a trip to the UK, you arrange an exchange for anything from a long weekend to several months or more.
Tony and Pauline Shaw, a retired couple from Crawley in West Sussex, are experienced exchangers with at least a dozen swaps under their belts in the US, New Zealand, South Africa and Italy. "We like it because it is more of an experience than a holiday, living like the locals," says Tony. "Exchanges can take a while to sort out, up to 12 months in some cases, but we've never had a bad one."
However, despite the recommendations of seasoned swappers, there are important implications to consider, not least the possibility of damage to your home and the effect on your insurance policies.
If you have a home stacked with priceless antiques and delicate vases, or are worried by the idea of marks on your pristine carpets, you are probably not going to be attracted by the idea of home exchanging in the first place.
But Caroline Connelly, UK representative of HomeLink, says problems are rare as the vast majority of exchangers take pride in leaving their host's home exactly as they found it. "If you have a family heirloom that you don't want them to touch, just lock it away," she says. "Exchangers tend to be fairly easy-going, and they'll understand about the odd broken plate."
Even so, she recommends arranging a contract setting out who will pay for insurance excesses if a claim has to be made, as well as other issues such as who will pay for telephone bills.
As long as you have informed your insurer that guests will be using your house, any accidental damage should be covered by your home contents policy. In the extremely unlikely event that your home-swappers turned out to be thieves, however, your insurer would probably not pay out.
Malcolm Tarling of the Association of British Insurers says many insurers will be happy that someone is staying in your property while you are away, and will take the view that it will be more secure as a result.
"Most are likely to give cover, but may restrict it so that theft is not included," he says.
The biggest complaint with home swaps is last minute cancellations, according to Ms Connelly, though she says even these are rare. "If there is a death or illness in your family, which means you are unable to travel, your travel insurance should cover it," she says. "If the people you are swapping with cancel, your insurer is unlikely to pay out."
Some home exchange clubs have links to specialist travel insurers which will cover such eventualities.
Intervac, for example, offers a policy which can pay out for flight and other costs if your exchange partners have to cancel.
Many home exchangers also swap cars, saving each other potentially hundreds of pounds in hire costs. Depending on their driving record, you should be able to insure your guests as temporary named drivers on your motor policy, and they should hopefully do the same for you. You should ask for a copy of the cover note and of any exclusions or excess applicable, and provide the same for them.
Most home exchangers will specify whether they are prepared to swap with families with young children, or allow smokers into their home.
If you fall into one of these groups your choice of swaps is likely to be restricted.
The internet based clubs will usually allow non-members to see potential swaps, allowing you to assess whether there are enough to suit you before you part with the membership fee.
Typically you will be shown details of the property and its facilities along with information on when and where the owners wish to swap. Contact details can often only be viewed by members.
Membership fees vary according to the size of the club and therefore the choice available.
HomeLink claims to be the largest, with 14,000 members spread across 50 countries. It charges £95 for a year, including an internet listing for your property, together with access to other members' contact details.
Your details also go into HomeLink's exchange directory, which comes out three times a year. Contact homelink.org.uk or call 01962 886882
Intervac also has thousands of members around the world. It charges £99 for a one-year internet listing and a listing in its biannual printed directory. If you don't want a copy of the directory, the fee is £85. Contact intervac.co.uk or call 01249 461101
The International Home Exchange Network (ihen.com) is a US-based internet-only club. It charges $39.95 to list your property. Non-members can view and respond to listings, so you do not have to join to arrange an exchange.
Home Exchange (www.homeexchange.com) has more than 6,000 listings in 85 countries and, like IHEN, allows non-members to contact listed members. It charges $49.95 to list your property for a year, with discounts for longer listings.
Home Base Holidays (homebase-hols.com) has around 100 members advertising exchanges in the UK, Europe, US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
Membership is £29 for one year and £39 for two.
Something for everyone
As well as general home swap clubs, with their thousands of choices, there are a number of specialist operators catering for specific groups.
Families with young children can sign up for the National Childbirth Trust's House Swap Register for £29.99 a year. This comes out three times a year, and has details of several hundred families, all with at least one child under 13, who are willing to swap houses.
The big advantage of swapping with a family with similar age children, is that you are less likely to have to cart cots, pushchairs and toys along with you.
Your swappers may also provide details of reliable babysitters and local attractions for children.
Call 01626 360689 or email thetupmans@yahoo.co.uk for more details
Disabled travellers might have specific needs, such as wheelchair access, which could rule out many ordinary home swaps. Specialist clubs aim to overcome this problem. One such is Vacation Home Swap (independentliving.org/vacex) which lists dozens of potential exchanges around the world. The information is posted free, and there is no subscription charge.
Other specialist exchange clubs exist for particular professions, for example teacherhomeswap.com and teacherstravelweb.com for teachers, and sabbaticalhomes.com for academics.
There are also home swap clubs for gays and lesbians.
Mi Casa Su Casa is a US-based club with members around the world. It charges $60 (£34) for three years membership to its gayhometrade.com website.
