Standard homeowners policies include fire, explosion, riot and civil commotion, vandalism and malicious mischief.

This includes the structure of your home, your personal possessions, and additional living expenses in case you have to move out while repairs take place, covering things like your hotel bills, restaurant food, and any other expenses you have to meet while work is taking place on your home.

Business owner's insurance covers damage to the physical attributes of a business and its contents caused by fire, riots, civil commotion or vandalism. It rarely covers plate glass windows but you can often insure those separately.

If you have to stop work and shut down or limit your opening hours because of rioting, your policy might include loss of income under business income insurance, also called business interruption insurance. But this only applies to physical damage, not income. You'll need to add a 'civil authority provision' to your business policy to cover lost income and extra expenses in case the police won't let you access a specific place because of a riot or civil commotion.

Riot-damaged cars are only covered by comprehensive auto insurance. It pays out for damage to the vehicle and its contents caused by fire, falling objects, vandalism and riot. Some companies include cover for auto glass without a deductible.

Nearly every travel insurance policy excludes war and civil war, either declared or undeclared. If your trip is delayed or you have to cancel it because of war or civil unrest, you can't make a claim. Civil unrest is defined as violent protests, riots, arson, looting, occupation, border violations and armed uprisings.

A few policies offer political evacuation or non-medical evacuation cover, which transports you to a safe place if trouble arises. Others include 'riot' in the reasons, you are covered for travel delays. Our advice is to check your policy before you travel.