Unoccupied Property Insurance London

Unoccupied Properties

• the probability of it becoming vandalised, broken into or occupied by squatters increases greatly.
• Likewise, a burst pipe going undiscovered for a significant time causing serious damage is a real possibility.

The good news is that property owners are now able to compare empty house insurance quotes for from panel of insurers offering very competitive rates.

Properties can become vacant for any number of reasons. For example; pending sale, upon death and being subject to probate and if a property is being let out and there is a void period whilst new tenants are being sought or the property is being prepared for reoccupation. During this period Clover Insurance Services can provide you with the policy you need for your peace of mind.

We can offer unoccupied house insurance that can include theft, malicious damage, storm and escape of water and it doesn’t have to cost the earth. Take a look at the three levels of cover below to see how you can get cover not usually available.

Get an immediate quote and go on cover now!

Advice for owners of empty properties*

Property owners should be aware that most household insurance companies will drastically reduce cover for empty properties or even withdraw cover completely if a property stands empty from as little as 30 consecutive days in some cases. Important covers such as such as escape of water, theft and malicious damage are very often unavailable.

At Clover Insurance Services, we offer specialist empty house insurance policies, providing you with the cover that other insurers will not give.

Tell your Insurance Company

When your property becomes empty for whatever reason, you must immediately inform your insurance company as this is a “material fact” and can affect your cover. It may be that failure to advise them can leave you completely uninsured as they make consider your policy to be invalidated. Once they have been notified, they may then decide to further restrict cover, or not to invite renewal of the policy at all. This is where Clover Insurance Services can advise on a more suitable product for your needs, such as unoccupied property insurance, giving you a greater level of cover than you might otherwise have been able to get.

Don’t leave any valuable items on the premises

As most policies will exclude theft of contents once a home is unoccupied for an extended time, it is vital that all valuables are removed from the home immediately. However, a property that has been devoid of all furnishings during the longer term (over 3 years) can be very difficult to insure, so some insurers recommend leaving basic furniture in the property to make it appear occupied.

Make sure the property is secure

Make sure that all window and door locks are in use and any potential entry points are protected. If the house has an alarm, ensure that it is set. It is also a good idea to seal the letter box if the house is going to be empty for a long time. This can help reduce the risk of entry by vandals, arsonists and squatters.

Heating

Either drain down the water system in the home completely, so that the risk of damage caused by escaping water is removed, or ensure that the heating is maintained on a frost alert setting, or to a temperature of 15 degrees centigrade. This will reduce the risk of water freezing and causing burst pipes during sudden falls in temperature. You can also open the loft hatch slightly to reduce the risk of your water tank freezing.

Regular inspections

Some insurers will agree to cover an empty property provided you can guarantee to have the property inspected by an authorised adult on a regular basis. Written records of each inspection, which should be internal and external, must be kept. In the event of a claim, these can be produced to verify the times of the inspections.

Turn off unused services

Mains services which are left switched on but are unused will increase the risk to your unoccupied house or building. Therefore, any services not being used to heat or secure the property should be switched off.

*The above suggestions for protecting your empty property are given as general “common sense” guidelines and Clover Insurance Services does not imply that they are exhaustive or acceptable to all insurance companies. No liability for reliance on this advice is accepted and you should always check your policy for full details of conditions applying to your vacant property.

You can choose from 3 levels of cover for empty property insurance, compare quotations from our panel of specialist insurers and go on cover now.

Typically unoccupied property insurance cover can include the following:

LEVEL 1 OPTION
The cost of repairing or rebuilding the property following loss or damage to your house by the following specific perils:

• Fire, lightning, explosion or earthquake
• Aircraft and other flying devices or items dropped from them
• Subsidence, heave or landslip

Click here for an option 1 quote and cover.

LEVEL 2 OPTION
The cost of repairing or rebuilding the property following loss or damage to your house by the following specific perils:

• Fire, lightning, explosion or earthquake
• Aircraft and other flying devices or items dropped from them
• Collision by vehicle or animal
• Storm, flood or weight of snow
• Breakage or collapse of fixed radio & television aerials, satellite dishes & their fixtures and fittings and masts
• Escape of water from, and frost damage to, fixed water tanks, apparatus or pipes
• Escape of oil from a fixed domestic heating installation and smoke damage caused by a fault in any fixed domestic heating installation
• Subsidence, heave or landslip
• Falling trees, telegraph poles or lamp-posts
• Accidental breakage of sanitary fittings
• Accidental breakage to underground services which extend from your home to the public mains

Get a level 2 quote and go on cover here.

LEVEL 3 OPTION
The cost of repairing or rebuilding the property following loss or damage to your house by the following specific perils:

• Fire, lightning, explosion or earthquake
• Aircraft and other flying devices or items dropped from them
• Collision by vehicle or animal
• Storm, flood or weight of snow
• Breakage or collapse of fixed radio and television aerials, satellite dishes & their fixtures and fittings and masts
• Escape of water from and frost damage to fixed water tanks apparatus or pipes
• Escape of oil from a fixed domestic heating installation and smoke damage caused by a fault in any fixed domestic heating installation
• Subsidence, heave or landslip
• Falling trees, telegraph poles or lamp-posts
• Accidental breakage of sanitary fittings
• Accidental breakage to underground services which extend from your home to the public mains
• Theft or attempted theft (including malicious damage)

Click here for an option 3 quotation.

Legal Liability to the Public Applies to all these levels of cover

Any amount which you are legally liable to pay as damages for bodily or damage to property, plus your defence costs and expenses arising as owner of the property up to £2,000,000 for any one accident or series of accidents arising out of one event or £2,000,000 in all for pollution or contamination.

Call Us Now 020 8805 1121 for an unoccupied property insurance quote.