INSURANCE FOR LANDLORDS

If you have invested in buy to let property, insurance is likely to be a priority – not only to protect the building and any contents you own, but as a defence against some of the risks and liabilities which come with your role as a landlord.

This, in a nutshell, is what insurance for landlords is all about.

Why do you need insurance for landlords?

Insurance for landlords – or buy to let insurance as it also sometimes known – comprises a number of elements, all of which are designed to protect the physical assets and the business itself.

A far as the structure and fabric of the building and your contents are concerned, this means protection against such potentially major and diverse risks as fire, earthquakes, explosions, subsidence, floods, storm damage, impacts (from aircraft, vehicles or falling trees and branches), vandalism and theft.

Not all policies are likely to cover all of these risks, so you might want to compare carefully to make sure that you secure the safeguards you particularly need.

You also need insurance for landlords to guard against other risks and liabilities.

Chief of these may be landlord’s liability cover as protection against claims that you have been negligent in some way in failing to prevent injury or property damage to your tenants, their visitors or members of the public. Because of the potentially high cost of such claims, it is common for landlord’s liability insurance to be at least £1 million – or more.

If you employ others to help run your buy to let business (for example, a lettings agency or a team of cleaners), you are almost certain to have a legal obligation to hold at least £5 million employers’ liability insurance against claims from employees who may have been injured or who have contracted an illness or other medical condition whilst in your employment.

Your business relies upon the receipt of rents from your tenants. These may be disrupted if an insured incident leaves the accommodation temporarily uninhabitable. Landlord insurance typically offers a degree of compensation for such loss of rental income.

What you need to know when buying cover

The one thing you need to know above all others, perhaps, is the need for specialist landlord insurance, and not standard home insurance, if your property is let to tenants.

Your buy to let property is essentially a business asset, run to earn an income from your tenants, and exposed to risks that are both qualitatively and quantitatively different to those faced by an owner occupied home.

As far as your insurer is concerned, this is a critical difference and if you rely on standard home insurance, when your home is in fact let to tenants, you are likely to find that any claim you might make is declined and rejected.

Why choose us?

At UKinsuranceNET we have access to all the major UK providers of insurance for landlords, so are able to secure the cover you need at competitive prices.

From one year to the next, you may earn valuable no claims discounts, with further attractive savings on cover for a portfolio of multiple properties – all backed with our professional, personal service.