Vacant House Insurance

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Fire Risks - Vacant House Insurance

In some British cities, as many as one in four of all house fires take place in vacant or empty property. This is the reported experience of the London Fire Brigade and makes frightening reading for the many thousands of homeowners each year who, for one reason or another, need to leave their houses vacant for some time. Though many thousands of such homeowners might be at risk, relatively few appear so far to have caught on to a new financial safeguard on the market in the shape of vacant house insurance.

Sadly, vacant or empty houses are a magnet for unwelcome attention. When a property stands unoccupied, it is far more vulnerable to the threat of malicious damage and vandalism. Most damaging of such mindless acts, of course, is the risk of arson. An empty or vacant property is at much greater risk of damage by fire than an occupied home.

Similarly, the vacant house is also more vulnerable to the risk of accidental fire. With no one at home to spot the early telltale signs, when fire takes hold it can be many valuable minutes before the alarm is raised, the fire dealt with and the damage minimised.

Indeed, most of the risks to our homes can be multiplied several times over when the house is vacant for any period of time. A burst water pipe, or even a slow-dripping tap, can cause considerable damage if there is no one to spot it early enough. Rising flood waters might be diverted by neighbours on the spot to protect their own homes, while the vacant property is the one that gets left until last. Last night's storm might have loosened tree roots or branches that come crashing down on the unoccupied home when the winds pick up once again.

Insurers, of course, make it their business to know all about such risks. They are aware of the heightened vulnerability of a vacant home. And that is probably why the majority of mainstream insurers grow distinctly nervous and coy about the cover they are prepared to extend to the temporarily vacant house. In many cases, the level of cover is substantially reduced when the house is unoccupied; in other cases, the cover is even treated as lapsed or void.

Clearly, however, the property is still a considerable asset that needs the continued protection of adequate insurance even when it is vacant - indeed, there is probably a still greater need when it is unoccupied. A specialist insurance product has been developed by a few discerning insurers, therefore, specifically to tackle this need - vacant house insurance.

Vacant house insurance recognises the specific and particular risks posed by a vacant property and, instead of turning its back on them, works with the owners of such properties in order to manage the heightened risk, take steps to reduce the risks and offer indemnity against any loss or damage if things should go wrong. Like many innovative products, however, vacant house insurance is not widely known and it can sometimes prove more difficult for the homeowner to find exactly the right cover for his particular needs. Those looking to find the most appropriate type of vacant house insurance, therefore, could be well advised to seek the services of a specialist, professional insurance adviser.