UK Property Search All UK Counties ------------------------ ENGLAND:- Avon Bedfordshire Berkshire Buckinghamshire Cambridgeshire Cheshire Cleveland Cornwall Cumbria Derbyshire Devon Dorset Durham East Sussex Essex Gloucestershire Guernsey Channel Islands Hampshire Herefordshire Hertfordshire Humberside Isle of Man Isle of Scilly Isle of Wight Jersey Channel Islands Kent Lancashire Leicestershire Lincolnshire London Manchester Merseyside Middlesex Norfolk Northamptonshire Northumberland Nottinghamshire Oxfordshire Rutland Shropshire Somerset Staffordshire Suffolk Surrey Tyne and Wear Warwickshire West Midlands West Sussex Wiltshire Worcestershire Yorkshire ------------------------ SCOTLAND Aberdeenshire Angus Argyll and Bute Ayrshire Banffshire Carmarthenshire Clackmannanshire Dumfries and Galloway Dunbartonshire East Lothian Fife Flintshire Highland Inverclyde Inverness Shire Lanarkshire Midlothian Moray Orkney Islands Perthshire Renfrewshire Scottish Borders Shetland Islands Stirlingshire West Dunbart West Lothian Western Isles ------------------------ WALES Caerphilly Ceredigion Clwyd Conwy Denbighshire Dyfed Gwent Gwynedd Isle of Anglesey Merthyr Tydfil Mid Glamorgan Monmouthshire Pembrokeshire Powys Rhondda Cynon Taff South Glamorgan Torfaen Vale of Glamorgan West Glamorgan ------------------------ NORTHERN IRELAND County Antrim County Down County Fermanagh County Londonderry County Tyrone All Property Types Apartment/Flat Semi-Detached House Detached House Terraced House Bungalow Cottage Mobile Home Holiday Home All Letting Types Furnished Unfurnished All Rental Values £100 to £200 £200 to £300 £300 to £400 £400 to £500 £500 to £600 £600 to £700 £700 to £800 £800 to £900 £900 to £1000 £1000 to £1200 £1200 to £1500 £1500 to £2000 £2000 to £3000 £3000 to £5000 International Search   UK Counties Quick County Search Aberdeenshire Angus Argyll and Bute Avon Ayrshire Banffshire Bedfordshire Berkshire Buckinghamshire Caerphilly Cambridgeshire Carmarthenshire Ceredigion Cheshire Clackmannanshire Cleveland Clwyd Conwy Cornwall County Antrim County Down County Fermanagh County Londonderry County Tyrone Cumbria Denbighshire Derbyshire Devon Dorset Dumfries and Galloway Dunbartonshire Durham Dyfed East Lothian East Sussex Essex Fife Flintshire Gloucestershire Guernsey Channel Islands Gwent Gwynedd Hampshire Herefordshire Hertfordshire Highland Humberside Inverclyde Inverness Shire Isle of Anglesey Isle of Man Isle of Scilly Isle of Wight Jersey Channel Islands Kent Lanarkshire Lancashire Leicestershire Lincolnshire London Manchester Merseyside Merthyr Tydfil Mid Glamorgan Middlesex Midlothian Monmouthshire Moray Norfolk Northamptonshire Northumberland Nottinghamshire Orkney Islands Oxfordshire Pembrokeshire Perthshire Powys Renfrewshire Rhondda Cynon Taff Rutland Scottish Borders Shetland Islands Shropshire Somerset South Glamorgan Staffordshire Stirlingshire Suffolk Surrey Torfaen Tyne and Wear Vale of Glamorgan Warwickshire West Dunbart West Glamorgan West Lothian West Midlands West Sussex Western Isles Wiltshire Worcestershire Yorkshire UK Major Cities Quick City Search Birmingham Bristol Cardiff Edinburgh Glasgow Leicester Leeds London Manchester Nottingham Oxford Reading Wakefield

Advertisers

Existing Users Log In     View ALL Notices     Contact Us    Letting Agents  England  Scotland  Wales  Northern Ireland  USA

you are here: Homepage > Property Insurance > Empty Property Insurance >

UK Empty Property Building Insurance   Get Quote  A range of perils is available (not just Fire) Long Term Unoccupancy Considered Modern Policy Wording Quick decision as to cover available Each Risk considered on it's merits       Guide to Empty Property Insurance One of the hardest types of insurance to place, empty property insurance is difficult to obtain without approaching a specialist insurance provider. Insurers perceive that a property that is unoccupied, is a poor risk for insurance purposes. Empty property is often more susceptible to insurance claims from weather related incidents, with burst pipes in particular being a problem. Break-ins and vandalism can also be a cause for concern, particularly if the property does not look lived in and often when a loss does occur, it is more acute at an empty property as there is no person on site to help minimise a loss. Some insurers also feel that empty property is not always in the best state of repair, properties sometimes become empty because that are about to be renovated or have been purchased cheaply with a view to conversion. What ever the reason, there are additional risks associated with empty properties and thus many insurance companies, prefer not to quote for them. However, how do insurers define an empty building ? There are two usual measures used to determine if a building is unoccupied or not. Firstly, is it furnished enough to be normally lived-in. If the answer is no and simply keeping a few bits of furniture in the property wont do, then an insurance company would most likely consider the property to be empty. Secondly, insurance companies usually consider property to be empty if it has not be lived in for a period of 30 consecutive days. If you take out a standard home insurance policy for a building, then move out of the property, you may find that in almost all cases, your policy will contain an un occupancy clause. Depending on the insurance company you are with, you may find the cover you receive after the 30 day period to be very restricted. Policy wordings need to be studied most carefully, as well as the restricted cover, you may also find that there are warranties and terms and conditions that apply to the insurance. One of the most typical is that the property has to be inspected at least every 14 days. This should not present too many problems as the insurers do not insist that the policyholder has to do the checking, it could be a relative or an agent. Some insurers specialise in insuring empty properties and you may find that by contacting a company that operate on this basis, you can obtain a much wider range of perils than from a standard home insurance provider. When reviewing cover that is offered to you, think carefully about what are the most important perils to have covered, not just who has provided the longest list. Another important factor when choosing your cover is to carefully study what the insurance company require you to do to make sure that the policy is valid. Purchasing a policy for an empty property is one thing but being able to make a valid claim under the policy will only be possible if you have carried out all requirements as stipulated in the wording. To make things easier for policyholders, warranties or endorsements for unoccupied or empty property tend or should be grouped together. Different insurance companies will want you to perform certain tasks and whilst many seem a little time consuming, in the main, they are just common sense. Insurance companies have lost of data going back many years and from experience ( usually costly experience) , they know how to help prevent losses in unoccupied property. Whilst many will consider insurance on a empty property, they will not want to take any unnecessary risks and certainly not any risk that can be prevented. Most will want you to visit the premises on a regular basis. If there is a claim, the insurers will most likely ask for proof of the dates and times, the property was inspected, it is important to write down the dates and times of visits and the inspections carried out. A check list is a good idea and every room can be toured, checking windows etc. Some will want the electrics switched off and the water drained down and switched off at the stop cock. others will even want you to tape up the letter box. When choosing you insurance for an empty property, you must always disclose to the insurance company, your full intentions for the property. Of particular relevance is the property that is about to undergo renovation, it is important the insurers are made aware of any work that is to be carried out at the premises. Many polices will contain a contractor's exclusion clause and in some cases a more specialist type of insurance should be applied for.   back to top