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Holiday Home Insurance
Holiday home insurance for second homes, holiday property or a cottage in the UK and overseas can be difficult and expensive, as the properties are often unoccupied during long periods when they could be at risk to burst pipes, flooding and vandalism.
Holiday home insurance is available from specialist insurers who have a proven track record in providing holiday home insurance. Insurance companies prefer that properties they insure are occupied and therefore monitored. Empty properties are at risk and therefore a potential problem waiting to happen for the insurance company.
When you do find an insurer to offer holiday home insurance it is vitally important you carefully read the small print, as most holiday home insurance policies restrict cover unless you comply with their security requirements. As an example, the holiday home insurance can ask for your property to be checked by a person weekly and, if unoccupied for more than 30 days, then any heating system must be fully drained and that the property is adequately protected and secure at all times. Failure to comply with these conditions will result in any claim being denied.
Should you let your second home then you must make sure you take a holiday home insurance policy that covers for holiday let and will cover for damage caused by third parties, adequate public liability insurance, loss of rental income, and to protect your contents against damage caused by holidaymakers. Legal expenses protection is a very important benefit to include as litigation is highly likely with letting your home to third parties, and a sternly worded letter from a solicitor can often resolve the problem.
Over the past decade low mortgage rates have led to a dramatic increase in secondary holiday home ownership and holiday lets, which has meant an increase in the number of holiday home insurance policies being rolled out by conventional insurers to meet the demands. This has led to a sector of the home insurance market specialising in second home, holiday let insurance for properties in the UK and abroad.
Surprisingly, many primary homes in the UK are not insured, as was evident during the flooding in the summer of 2007 when people lost everything without any insurance cover at all. There is also a tendency by some holiday home owners to cut back on the levels of holiday home insurance. If the property is mortgaged then the lender will insist upon buildings insurance, which will cover the fabric of the building, garages, outbuildings, swimming pools, walls and gates, etc. Buildings insurance will also cover permanent fixtures and fittings in the property, such as windows, bathrooms, kitchens, etc. You should always insure your buildings for the cost of rebuilding, not the cost of purchase. You can calculate the cost of rebuilding your UK home by visiting the Association of British Insurers website http://abi.bcis.co.uk/. Alternatively you can engage the services of an established chartered surveyor and a reputed local builder to provide an insurance valuation. It is important to get this figure correct at the outset for your holiday home, as all premiums are indexed linked.
Holiday home insurance should also cover contents to protect anything that could be removed and or damaged by your visitors, as they tend not to treat your property with the same respect as you would. Accidental damage is an important benefit to include in your holiday home insurance. Contents insurance for your holiday home will cover damage to your contents in the event of fire, flood, storm or theft.
Holiday home insurance policies do not normally include cover for personal possessions and valuables. If you want to leave valuables in your holiday home, you should cover them under an 'all risks' benefit on your main household policy.
Other benefits that you should consider to be included in your holiday home insurance include Legal Liability Insurance, Employers Liability, Loss of Rental Income and Legal Expenses Insurance.
You should make sure you carefully read the terms and conditions of your holiday home insurance policy prior to acceptance and remember that failure to comply with the conditions will mean that your claim is ruled invalid, leaving you totally responsible for any damage caused.