A holiday home is a place to which you can escape to forget all your worries. Or, at least, it should be.
Problems can arise, how-ever, and that is where holiday home insurance steps in. It can provide peace of mind, whether there is a problem with the property itself, or if its visitors are blighted by bad luck.
Here is what you need to know and what to look out for when taking out this type of cover.
What is holiday
home insurance?
Holiday home insurance is designed to cover the risks that can arise from owning a second property in the UK, or overseas. For example, it provides financial protection from potentially wallet-busting events such as flooding, burglary or guests being injured on a property’s premises and you – the owner – being found liable.
It is possible to take out holiday home insurance for a range of properties and buildings including, houses, apartments, chalets and static caravans.
What does holiday
home insurance cover?
Holiday home insurance has many parallels with traditional home insurance – but there are important differences as well. For example, holiday home insurance typically covers properties from the usual risk of damage caused by fire, flooding and storms, as well as loss due to theft. However, it does also provide cover when buildings are left unoccupied for lengthy periods of time, say, 30 days or more.
Standard home insurance policies tend not to cover for this, or they impose severe restrictions on the cover provided in such situations.
As with standard home cover, holiday home insurance comes in two parts:
• Building insurance, this element covers the property’s structure, including its roof, floors, walls, doors, windows and permanent fixtures.
• Contents insurance, this element is concerned with items inside a property and protects against the cost of repairing or replacing possessions, furniture and fittings in the event they are damaged or stolen.
You can buy buildings and contents insurance for holiday homes separately, or you can combine the pair in an all- in-one policy from a single provider.
Depending on your choice of provider, policies also include optional cover for accidental damage, home emergencies, or problems caused through letting out your property. These elements may come at extra cost, so it is important before signing up to run through the details and understand what is (and isn’t) covered by your policy as standard.
Extra covers
The following are examples of types of cover that may be included within a holiday home insurance policy. If they are not included as standard, it might be possible to add them on at extra cost:
• Accidental damage covers the cost of repairs or replacement items. For example, where a guest has broken the TV
• Home emergency provides you with contact information for local tradespeople in the event that work needs to be carried out on your property following an emergency such as the boiler breaking down or pest infestation
• Locks there may be sepa-rate cover to pay for changing the locks if the keys are lost or stolen
• Emergency travel meets transport costs in the event you have to visit a property quickly to help sort out a crisis and fix any problems
• Loss of income or rent offers financial cover from the risk of lost income. For example, where a property cannot be rented out following a flood or other disaster
• Alternative accommodation should a property become uninhabitable, this covers the costs of housing guests elsewhere
• Public liability insurance provides financial protection from legal action should guests suffer injuries in your property for which you are held financially responsible
• Employer’s liability insurance a legal requirement that covers the cost of employees (e.g. gardeners, maintenance staff) taking legal action against you after being injured while at work on your premi-ses.
• Legal expenses protects financially against the cost of potential legal disputes you enter into with neighbours or guests.
Please contact us for a quotation 020 7691 2409.
