What can unoccupied property insurance offer you?

As an owner of an unoccupied property, one of the last things on your mind might be insurance. You may be thinking about how to turn your vacant property into a viable rental, or maybe you have grand plans to renovate it? Either way, insurance isn’t usually on the forefront of people’s minds, but it is important to not overlook it.

Some of the first questions you might ask when it comes to insuring your unoccupied property might be:

Does my standard household policy also cover my unoccupied property?

If you have buildings insurance or contents insurance for the home you reside in, the likelihood is that the policy will not cover your second home or unoccupied property. Read up on your current policy or contact your insurance provider, to find out exactly what you are covered for. 

How long will standard unoccupied property insurance last for?

If a property you are responsible for is left unoccupied for more than 30 days, whether it’s a gap in tenancy, being renovated, in probate or intestate, or even going through the conveyancing process, it’s likely that cover may be restricted on a standard home insurance policy.

Trying to find insurance cover for an unoccupied property can be a minefield of restrictive covers and a list of terms and conditions that you must undertake. Some insurers put in place stringent terms (“Unoccupied Building Conditions”) which must be enforced before they will provide cover. For example, draining down the water systems, switching off the utilities, weekly documented visits, installing certain locks, sealing up letterboxes, etc. Failure to comply could lead to a claim being turned down.

For most standard-construction properties that have been unoccupied for less than 12 months, and are under £500k in rebuild value, you can choose which, if any, conditions you want to include. This is why our cover for properties that have been unoccupied for less than 12 months is a very flexible solution, as we can offer policy terms of 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months.

What type of properties can Guardcover Unoccupied Property cover me for?

Whether the property you want to insure is Leasehold or Freehold, Guardcover Unoccupied Property can look to offer you some cover options that include:

  • Freehold owned in its entirety - We can offer buildings and contents cover
  • Leasehold and legally responsible for insuring the buildings - We can offer buildings and contents cover
  • Freehold - We can offer contents cover
  • Leasehold and not legally responsible for insuring the buildings - We can offer contents cover

What’s included in Guardcover Unoccupied Property insurance?

At Guardcover Unoccupied Property, we can cover damage to your insured property that’s been caused by:

  • Accidental damage and malicious damage
  • Theft and attempted theft
  • Escape of water or oil
  • Fallen trees
  • Storm, flood, fire and subsidence
  • £5million property owners’ liability
  • Damage to locks following theft, attempted theft or loss of keys
  • Tree felling or lopping
  • Fly-tipping
  • Finding the source of a leak
  • Breakage of glass

With over 20 years’ experience of serving the unoccupied community, we understand the needs of solicitors, home owners, conveyancers and more. To ensure we cover a variety of eventualities we have spoken to our customers, partners and solicitors to ensure we include features for all types of unoccupied property situations. We understand that every property is different, requiring its own specific policy.