Investing in making your home more eco-friendly can at first seem like an expensive and laborious task. However the long terms benefits can far outweigh that initial cost. Not only can you save money on your utility bills but you can also lower the annual premium of your house insurance.

Here the moneysupermarket home insurance team suggest five green investments you can make today.

1. Make money with solar panels

The coalition government is offering a number of incentives for the UK homeowner to invest in solar panels. Possibly the best incentive is the chance to feed energy back into the national grid potentially making you 40p per unit.

Solar panels are covered as part of a home insurance policy as standard so it wont cost you any more to insure them. They can also save you a considerable amount on your electricity bills as they can be used to power your home. Probably best used in areas of the UK that get regular sunlight, like the South West.

2. Double Glazing

As with solar panels, the benefits of double glazing are two fold. Again they will help save you money on both your gas and electricity prices as double glazing will help keep the heat in your home. The Energy Saving Trust has stated that a homeowner would look to save around £135 a year by having double glazing installed.

Home insurance companies look favourably on double glazing as they provide state of the art locking mechanisms. Because of this you are less likely to be burgled and the frames of double glazed windows are able to withstand the most extreme weather conditions.

3. Cavity wall insulation

Another method to save you money on both your energy prices and house insurance premiums. Cavity wall insulation can prevent up to 33 per cent of heat loss from your home saving both the environment and you money.

Because cavity wall insulation reduces the chances of damp occurring around the home and damage due to condensation, home insurers will again look to decrease your annual premium.

4. Upgrade your boiler

The older your boiler, the more expensive your home insurance is likely to be. This is because there are literally thousands of claims each year for broken down boilers. Not only that but less efficient boilers have higher energy usage therefore increased emissions.

By investing in a new boiler you could reduce your energy bills, home insurance premium and carbon emissions in one go. Boilers do not come cheap though and will also cost extra to fit. You may be able to get a grant for a new boiler by visiting the energy saving trust.

5. Loft Insulation

Another way to bring energy usage down and decrease your home insurance premium is loft insulation. Again this limits the amount of heat that can escape from your home. Home insurers look favourably on this because it reduces the chance of any water pipes that are located in the loft freezing during the winter months.

Last winter was one of the coldest on record in the UK which led to record call outs for flooded houses due to frozen pipes that eventually burst.