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Landlord Contents Insurance
Are you a landlord who wants to guarantee the safety of their property? Looking to safeguard your property from the risks of tenancy?
Then our specialist landlord insurance is for you! Adopt a more cautious and pragmatic approach to maintaining your freehold today!
What does this cover?
Landlord contents insurance is a policy that compensates for the damage inflicted upon the contents of a property; notably, domestic furniture and decorative goods. For example, in the case that the furniture in your property becomes ruined by flood damage you will be able to claim compensation through contents insurance.
Whether or not such fault is as a result of accidental or malicious damage, the cover offered through this policy will not only reimburse landlords for their loss but will additionally extend itself over a multi property portfolio.
Contents insurance does not account for the physical impairment of a building: such an incident can be covered through a buildings insurance policy. However, but buildings cover and contents cover should include property owners liability insurance.
Both buildings and contents insurance may be covered within a typical landlord policy, however they both cover slightly different situations, such as differing cover for accidental damage or alternative accommodation.
Accidental damage protection for contents with your landlord insurance
When defined, ‘accidental damage cover’ for your landlord insurance refers to the purely unintentional nature of the physical damage caused to both the building and the contents of the property.
Specifically, accidental damage to the contents within a property would, for example, include the accidental breaking of glass coffee tables that belong to the landlord.
What are the policy limits for landlords content insurance?
Landlords contents insurance does not address damage inflicted upon the tenants personal belongings; instead it is advised that tenants seek an additional insurance policy, such as a standard contents insurance to cover their possessions.
Landlord contents insurance cost
The cost for landlord contents insurance will vary from freehold to freehold. As a result it is worth getting in touch with Emerald Life specialists to achieve a specific quote that is tailored to your needs.
Give us a ring on 0330 113 7109 or email us at customerservice@emeraldlife.co.uk .
What about buildings insurance?
Whilst this article has the intention of explaining landlord contents insurance, it is worth taking some time to make a clearer distinction between what is addressed under contents and buildings insurance. As aforementioned, contents cover will address the damages made to the domestic furniture owned by the landlord; however the damage to the building itself would be covered under buildings insurance. Moreover, free standing items within the property will also not be accounted for under this policy.
In relation to fixtures and fittings insurance would be important.
What does tenants contents insurance cover?
Tenant contents insurance covers all items a tenant may own such as clothing items, electronics and appliances. Some insurance covers lost money, or food in the refrigerator. Landlord contents insurance will only cover the possessions of the property owner a tenant’s belongings . Therefore, if you are looking to safeguard your belongings as a tenant – tenants contents insurance is for you.
What is included in house content insurance?
Content insurance protects what you feel about a place you love. This includes your couch, computer, clothing and jewellery. Whether in an explosion, fire, or flood, the replacement cost is very high for most homeowners.
A frequently asked question about landlord’s contents insurance is whether or not such cover extends to the landlords personal home; unfortunately, it does not. House content insurance is the policy that will protect your personal home from perilous damage.
Seeking professional advice on tenant or landlord contents insurance? Get in touch with us here at Emerald to speak to an insurance specialist. Give us a call on 0330 113 7109 or email us at customerservice@emeraldlife.co.uk .
Do I need landlord insurance?
Whilst landlord insurance is not demanded legally, it is strongly advised that you protect your property with a form of insurance that covers the damage to both: your building and its contents – whether this be accidental and/or malicious.
Moreover, landlord insurance will provide cover in the event that a claim of personal injury and/or damage has been made against you by a third-party at your freehold.
Landlords Liability insurance
Landlords liability insurance policies will cover the cost of legal fees in the case a third-party has brought a claim against you as a policyholder.
What are the instances in which landlord liability cover cannot be provided?
- In the instance that your claim does not have more that 51% of success the insurers may decline to take up the claim
- Circumstances that exist before you cover began
- Prosecution of violent or dishonest acts; whether that be sexual or alcohol related offenses, illegal immigration or money laundering
Looking for additional cover: here are some of our policy add-ons
If you are looking for specialist landlord insurance cover which will address issues that are specific to your freehold we are here to offer some additional policies to provide the protection you need. Such add ons include:
- Landlord Home Emergency Cover
- Unoccupied property insurance covers
- Landlord legal expenses insurance
Landlord Home Emergency Cover: provides emergency cover for homes if you are unable to access your own rental property
Upon purchasing landlords home emergency cover, you will be protected in the event that unexpected issues prevent your property from being in use. For example, this could be a plumbing emergency, such as damaged pipes, or in the case that your boiler breaks down. Simultaneously, it will also cover the call- out cost for a tradesperson to repair the damages.
This is an additional cover, at an additional cost, for landlords who are particularly cautious about the condition of their property.
Unoccupied property insurance covers
Ultimately, an unoccupied commercial property insurance will cover commercial properties left unoccupied for a significant amount of time.
It is worth noting that most insurance holders will not provide this insurance for properties that have been unoccupied for more than 60 days.
Examples of unoccupied commercial properties can include:
- retail spaces
- office buildings
- warehouses
A side note: there is a legal difference between an unoccupied property and a vacant premises. The former will almost always be a part furnished property whereas a vacant premises will remain completely empty. If you have a property that has been unoccupied for more than 30 days we recommend that you urgently get in touch with your insurance provider in order to protect yourself from burglary and accidents as you may not be covered. If the worst happens we’re here to protect you and your property.
To learn more about vacant properties press click here ‘here‘.
Landlord legal expenses insurance
This policy will reimburse property owners for the legal cost regarding claims related to your rental property; specifically, this additional coverage addresses the expense of pursuing legal action against a tenant who has failed to pay rent and/or has maliciously damaged property.
Important documents
In order for policy documentation to be successful important documents, such as a written tenancy agreements, must be provided when establishing a landlords policy structure with your provider. Failure to provide such documentation could result within your provider refusing to accept a claim, say for malicious damage.
How our claims process works?
After the claim has been made against the allegedly liable party the loss adjustor’s journey begins. This process will proceed to determine the amount of losses and damages covered by your insurance policy, as well as establishing liable parties.
If you are looking to make a claim – we’re here to listen. Feel free to call us on 0330 113 7109 or email us at customerservice@emeraldlife.co.uk.
Do landlords need landlord contents insurance?
Each freeholder will have their own preferences and understanding of their own freehold needs. However, if you are unsure and want to seek further guidance on landlord contents insurance do not hesitate to get in touch. Give us a call on 0330 113 7109 or email us at customerserviceemerald.co.uk.
Being selective with your tenants
Being cautious upon selecting tenants is crucial within assuring the health of your property and can simultaneously have an impact on the overall policy price of your insurance. For example, HMOs (House of Multiple Occupation) and the accommodation of students would carry a higher risk than renting to families, elderly couples, or professionally led parties: as stereotypically, students tend to lack responsibility (falling victim to the local night life), whereas families tend to be more focused on maintaining a safe and habitable household.
Insurers tend to categorise the group of tenants in relation to risk: students and HMOs would be placed in a higher payment bracket, whereas professionally driven clients and families would be placed in a lower one.
What do I need to get a quote?
We’re here to learn about you!
When obtaining a quote for a landlord insurance policy, you will need a substantial amount of information available. This will include (but is not limited to):
- Personal details: contact details, policy address, CCJs & IVAs, previous past convictions, and any other information that you believe is relevant.
- Your property: these questions tend to be subjective upon varying natures of the freeholds, but will tend to include history of damage, potential subsidence, liability to storm etc.
- Usage
Payment preference
Initially we would take payment on a payment card, but otherwise on renewals, auto renew payment programme is followed at Emerald unless a customer requests otherwise.
Policy Add-ons
Policy add-ons include: landlord emergency cover, rent cover, unoccupied property insurance, landlord legal expenses and excess protection insurance.
Choose a specialist landlord insurer
Here at Emerald we strive to construct a comprehensive and specialist landlord insurance cover that is tailored to your needs, whether that be rental or commercial.
To summarise…
- However, landlord insurance as an overall policy will address property owners liability, buildings insurance, and will further reimburse landlords for the fee spent on arranging alternative accommodation.
- Landlord contents insurance cover provides compensation for damaged contents within a property, such as furniture and decorative goods. Notably, this insurance will protect your belongings from accidental and malicious damage. This will include repair costs to items.
- Landlord contents insurance only covers the property owners possessions – not the tenant’s. If you are a tenant who wants to insure your personal belongings, adopting a separate contents cover is advisable.
- Public liability insurance protects a landlord from the financial penalty that results from a third-party claim against their property. This form of insurance commonly covers legal costs.
- Customise your insurance with additional policies.
