Landlord Insurance FAQs
Your buy to let property is a significant asset, so it is important to make sure your investment is protected by having adequate insurance in place. We have answered some of the most common questions landlords ask us, relating to landlord insurance, below.
Do I need landlord insurance and building insurance?
Landlord insurance is a specific type of insurance, created to protect landlords from the risks associated with renting a property. A standard home insurance policy – buildings insurance, contents insurance, or a combination of the two – will most likely not cover tenanted properties, leaving you uninsured (and potentially breaking the terms of your mortgage) if you need to make a claim.
What is covered by landlord insurance?
A typical landlord insurance policy will cover building and contents – as a standard home insurance policy would – with additional landlord specific benefits. Your policy will be tailored to meet your needs, the below may be included as standard or an optional extra:
Is it a legal requirement to have landlord insurance?
There is no legal requirement to have a specific landlord insurance policy, however, failing to have one in place will likely break the terms of your mortgage, in addition to invalidating your contents and building insurance. The first step when looking for landlord insurance would be to talk to your mortgage or loan provider to check what their stipulations are regarding renting the property.
Do I need landlord insurance if I am renting to my family?
Yes, landlord insurance is required if you are renting to a member of your family. You are classed as a landlord when you receive rent payments for your property, even if the rental agreement is informal, so landlord insurance is required.
What is the average cost of landlord insurance?
As with every type of insurance, the actual cost varies depending upon a number of factors, including:
- Location of property
- Type and size of the property
- Type of tenant (e.g. working professionals or students)
- Level of cover required
Landlord insurance: students
Most landlord insurance policies will not include cover for student tenants as standard. Many insurance policies exclude all students – including mature and paid PhD students – who can make excellent tenants. It's worth adding student cover to your policy, even if students are not your obvious target market, so as not to limit your options when it comes to selecting tenants.
Landlord insurance: multiple properties
If you have a portfolio of buy to let properties it is worth investigating multi-property policies. A multi-property policy will most likely save you money, allowing you to have one central policy with the level of cover tailored to each individual property.
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