Property Owners Insurance
Landlords Insurance, the package policy provides a range covers to protect property owners
Get indemnity™ landlords insurance
Compare property owners (landlords insurance) for companies that own a portfolio of commercial and/or residential properties
As a property owner you have a legal responsibility to ensure that your commercial and/or residential properties do not present any risk of injury or property damage to either tenants, visitors or members of the public.
At get indemnity™ property owners insurance starts from £218 annually or £18.16 monthly for a single property. Below we provide some background and explain how property owners insurance can protect both small and large property portfolios worth hundreds of millions.
Any business that earns rent from a property or property portfolio should consider property owners insurance to protect their interests. To obtain your quote please give us a call on 0345 625 0711 or request a call back.
What is property owners insurance?
Property owners insurance, also known as Landlords Insurance, is a package product designed for companies that hold a portfolio of properties owned but not currently occupied by the owner.
Typically, insurers will provide options to include cover for: buildings insurance, landlords contents insurance, loss of rent, public liability, employers liability and legal expenses as described below.
Additional covers, such as engineering inspections, directors and officers insurance, terrorism, goods in transit, employee crime and specified all risks, are also available in conjuction with property owners insurance.
Who needs property owners insurance?
It is ultimately the landlords responsibility to adequately maintain and repair their property. Property owners insurance is not a legal necessity but without it you can leave your business exposed to expensive third-party compensation claims related to property damage or injury.
Secondly, protecting your assets in the event of an unexpected event makes good business sense. For example, a fire or a flood can cause devastating damage to your business assets.
Anyone that owns property whether they operate as a landlord for a single residential dwelling or they own and manage hundreds of commercial properties across the UK will need to consider property owners insurance.
Do we require tailored property owners insurance?
Commercial property owners insurance, is a modern and comprehensive policy which can be tailored to the specific needs of a variety of premises and circumstances, including but not limited to:
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Commercial Properties |
Residential Properties |
Industrial Properties |
Retail Properties |
Offices |
Residential Associations |
At get indemnity™ we are a specialist property owners insurance intermediary and can access a variety of insurers to identify the most appropriate cover to meet your needs.
Commercial property owners insurance cover:
Cover can be tailored to meet your specific your specific requirements. Please complete our online application and upload your current property owners insurance policy.
Commercial Buildings Insurance
Commercial buildings will protect your companys buildings against damage from a range of insured perils. Examples of such perils can include: fire, theft, storm, flood, escape of water, impact, explosion and riot. Commercial buildings insurance can cover the full cost of rebuilding, including any permanent fixtures.
Landlords Contents Insurance
Landlords content includes anything owned by your company within the property, such as the furniture that you have supplied to your tenants. Landlords contents insurance will protect your companys contents against loss or damage from a range of insured perils. Examples of such perils can include: fire, theft, accidental damage, storm, flood, escape of water, impact, explosion and riot.
Loss of Rent Insurance
Loss of rent provides protection for the financial loss you may suffer in the event that you are unable to rent out the property due to an insured loss. Coverage can be tailored for both the rental income and the indemnity period, often ranging from 12 to 36 months, depending on how long it takes to rebuild your property and re-tenant.
Public Liability Insurance
Public liability insurance will protect against claims arising from injury or property damage of persons other than your employees in the course of your business. The business insurance will protect against legal costs incurred in defending allegations and compensatory damages arising from any judgment, award or settlement.
Employers Liability Insurance
Employers liability insurance will protect against claims arising from injury or illness of your employees. The business insurance will protect against legal costs incurred in defending allegations and compensatory damages arising from any judgment, award or settlement.
Legal Expenses Insurance
Legal expenses insurance will cover legal representation or unforeseen legal costs in a range of circumstances, typically relating to your property, employment, or contract disputes.
Other property owners insurance covers include:
- Equipment Breakdown Insurance can protect against machinery and plant, owned or leased, that suffers damage during the course of your business.
- Engineering Inspection Insurance can offer a periodic inspection of machinery, appliances and equipment stated in the policy schedule.
- Specified All Risks Insurance can protect specified company items against defined perils (i.e. accidental damage and theft).
- Management Liability Insurance can offer D&O insurance, corporate legal liability (CLL), employment practices liability (EPL) and crime insurance.
- Product Liability Insurance will protect against claims arising from injury or property damage as a result of a fault with a product you have provided.
- Personal Accident Insurance can, in the event of an accidental bodily injury to any insured person, provide financial support as defined in the policy schedule.
- Money Insurance can protect against accidental loss, destruction or damage to money and non-negotiable instruments in a variety of defined situations.
- Stock in Transit Insurance can protect against damage to property in transit, by vehicles owned by or operated by you, or the custody or control of a third-party carrier.
How to correctly value your buildings and contents?
The buildings sum insured should represent the true value to rebuild the property that you are seeking to insure. The figure should include the costs of debris removal, architects fees and the cost to rebuild.
If you are unsure the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) can assist with identifying a local surveyor to provide professional advice to identify the true cost to rebuild.
Underinsurance remains a common theme with the cost to rebuild the property steadily increasing. Most insurers maintain a condition of average clause, which means if the sum insured for your buildings is less than the total cost of rebuilding, they can reduce the claim by the percentage you are underinsured.
For example: if the sum insured for a building is £200,000 and the true value to reinstate the property is £300,000 and you submit a claim for £100,000, insurers may only have to pay £66,666 (reduced by the percentage that you are underinsured).
Can you provide landlords insurance for unoccupied properties?
Unoccupied properties have been identified to be vulnerable to criminal activity and other insured perils. Therefore, insurers will typically not include unoccupied properties on their policies as standard.
A 30-day grace period is typically offered if the property is temporarily unoccupied. However, should a longer period be required, the policy should be converted to an unoccupied property owners insurance policy.
Can you provide landlords insurance for accidental damage?
Accidental damage is not always offered as standard within commercial property owners insurance. Accidental damage is considered to be damage caused to property that is both unforeseen and unintentional, not classed under another insurable peril. (Such as bursting a water pipe whilst hanging a picture etc.).
Can you provide landlords insurance for flat roofs?
Leaks from flat roofs on commercial properties can be coslty with loss of rent for the landlord and damage to stock and contents. A 'flat roof warranty' clause maybe included in the policy by some insurers for this reason. A minimum amount of servicing and state of repair is required for all sections of flat roof. The roof must be professionally checked and maintained by the landlord.
Should we insure our tenant's improvements under our policy?
If a tenant makes structural improvements to your building, such as installing a professional kitchen, the tenant should include these assets to their business insurance. The tenant will typically be the owner of these improvements during the course of the lease, even though they form part of your building.