For many of us, owning a second property and using it as our holiday home is a real dream.
It can also be one that’s reasonably attainable. However, there are some insurance issues to be aware of when you are thinking about owning a holiday home.
Property types and how you use them
The nature of the property you are considering will, of course, influence the type of property insurance that is suitable. Holiday homes might include:
-
- flats;
- bungalows;
- detached houses;
- terraced properties;
- static caravans;
- lodges;
- and so on.
There may be a specific form of UK holiday home insurance for each type. An experienced insurance provider will always make sure that the exact nature of your property is well understood before issuing you with a quotation.
An equally significant factor will be how you plan to use your holiday home.
That’s because different people use their properties differently in this respect. For example, you may find that some holiday home owners will:
- only use the property themselves for a few leisure breaks each year, possibly including their main summer holiday;
- use the accommodation at times themselves but also let it out during holiday peak times for the purposes of generating rental income;
- never use the property personally but instead will let it out for the longest possible periods during the year.
The nature of the way you use your holiday home will have a very significant impact on the type of UK holiday home insurance you require.
Landlord’s holiday home insurance
If you plan to use a holiday home for the purposes of letting and generating rental income, even over shorter durations, you may have become a landlord. As such, your requirements may typically be incorporated under some form of landlord insurance type cover.
That is important because you are using your property as a business. As such, the nature of the cover may be significantly different to that associated with a permanent or occasional owner-occupier. For example, if you are letting your property to tenants, you may need to have enhanced third party liability cover.
Residential park home insurance is not for holiday lets
If your property is of a type typically called a residential park home, the insurance implications are different again.
In order to secure insurance cover for a property or static caravan located on a specific-purpose site, you will need to use your property in strict accordance with the site’s legal licensing.
To give an example, if you own a park home on a site only licensed for non-permanent use, you may not be able to occupy your property permanently as your main place of residence. Even if you did, you may not be able to obtain insurance cover for permanent occupation, as your use would not conform to the basis of the site’s legal approval.
Residential park home insurance does not cover properties that are used as holiday lets – and, in most cases, you are not allowed by the site park owner to let your residential park home.
So while you may hear the term holiday park home insurance, be careful that you buy the correct type of cover. Speak to us if you are unsure as to what you need.
Summary
There is no single form of UK holiday home insurance.
The cover you require to protect your interests will differ depending upon things such as the physical nature of a property, its location and whether or not it resides on what might be termed a “recreational” versus “permanent occupation” site in terms of local authority definitions.
It is particularly important to ensure that the way you plan to use a property is accurately reflected in the property and contents cover you take out.
It makes sense discuss the issues involved with an experienced provider of such cover before making your final decision to purchase a given policy.
