Buy to Let Contents Insurance

Buy to let contents insurance

When you rent out a property you can be letting yourself in for trouble if you don't have adequate buy to let contents insurance.

Keeping your fingers crossed and hoping nothing gets broken or damaged is fine – for as long as it works!  However your tenants may easily damage or break your contents either by genuine accident or design. If you’re lucky they may admit to their responsibility and pay up. If you’re not then even if you hold a deposit it may be difficult to prove they are responsible.  You will have to pay for the item/s to be fixed or replaced and unless you have buy to let contents insurance in place you may have to meet all of the costs yourself.

Other risks

You could see your rental income evaporate in front of your very eyes if your contents were seriously damaged en-masse by say a fire or flood. So it may make sense to look at insuring the contents of any premises that you let out.

Contents insurance will normally cover things like your furniture, electrical goods, kitchen equipment, curtain, carpets etc, but won't cover the personal belongings of your tenants. 

Buy to let contents insurance is though only part of the risk protection story. You may also find it useful to take out buildings cover to protect the fabric of your buildings against risks from damage due to lightning, flood and earthquakes as well as any potential rebuilding costs.

Many forms of buildings and contents insurance will also protect you from loss of earnings should your premises not be usable while repairs are being carried out.

One final point to consider is that your third party liability means that you are responsible for any injury that your tenants or someone visiting your property may sustain either as a result of a defect or fault, or from an accident while on your premises. Aside from making sure that your premises are as safe as possible you may also find it worth while to take out some landlords liability insurance to cover you against any claim for damages from a third party.

These areas of insurance can be complicated. It may be worth while getting some advice from an insurance specialist to help you make decisions on what buy to let contents insurance is right for you.  These specialists can point you in the right direction and help with all of your other landlord’s insurance needs. They’ll also be happy to offer advice and guidance without commitment.