As a landlord you are probably well aware that the risks your property is exposed to are greater than those of a private home, so standard home insurance cover is not sufficient to protect your rental property. That’s why good letting property insurance cover may be invaluable to you to help protect your asset.

Some features of letting property insurance are very similar to those of standard home cover.

Buildings and contents insurance

This helps protect you and your bricks and mortar from the financial consequences of things like storm damage, floods, fire and earthquakes. To be adequately covered, it is typically advisable to be as accurate as possible about the full replacement value for your property.

It may be tempting to underestimate this value to help keep premiums down but it may be worth remembering that any claim would pay out only up to this value. If it were not enough to cover actual costs then you would have to find any shortfall yourself.

Even if your property is let as unfurnished, it may still contain some of your belongings like carpets or curtains, kitchen and laundry equipment etc. Items like these may be expensive to repair or replace and landlords contents insurance may be a sensible precaution.

Owners’ liability insurance

If you were to be sued by one of your tenants injured after tripping over a loose floorboard or by a passerby hit by a falling slate from your roof, then without owners’ liability insurance, typically you would be personally responsible for any damages awarded to the injured party.

Property owners’ liability insurance is typically included as standard in a buy to let buildings insurance policy.

Buy to let specifics

There are also other specific considerations that should ideally be taken into account when thinking about letting property insurance. Two of the main additional risks for a letting property are tenants and the fact that your property may be unoccupied for periods of time.

Damage by tenants

Damage by tenants typically falls into one of two categories – accidental and malicious. Not all insurers cover both types of damage in their buy to let buildings and contents insurance. Some do though and that could make repair or replacement of damaged items that bit easier.

Unoccupied property

Just because your property is unoccupied doesn’t mean that you don’t need to bother about insurance. In fact the opposite may typically be true. An unoccupied property is typically more at risk that an occupied one. By definition, an unoccupied property is typically one that that has stood empty for 30 or more days.

Small insignificant problems left unfixed may, over days or weeks, turn into major and expensive, headaches.

Dark windows, overgrown gardens and signs of construction work may also be advertising to thieves and vandals that your property is empty.

Unoccupied letting property insurance can help provide cover in these cases.