Landlord Contents Insurance

Landlord contents insurance offers protection for rental properties, including residential and commercial premises alike.

Properties that could benefit from landlords’ contents insurance include:

• Homes of multiple occupancy (HMOs)
• Block of flats
• Student flats and houses
• Multiple properties
• Large Portfolios

A landlords’ contents insurance policy can cover one property or many. A single policy may be able to protect both residential and commercial premises registered to the same owner, but you will need to check with the insurer.

A typical policy protects against loss, damage, theft and destruction of the landlord’s possessions in the property. This can include any equipment or furniture that is provided under the terms of the lease.

For residential properties, contents insurance may include televisions and/or entertainment systems provided to the tenants, as well as any microwaves, ovens, washing machines and vacuum cleaners.

Landlords’ contents insurance is there as a safeguard if high-value goods are damaged, whether due to malicious activity by tenants, natural disaster, or any other unforeseen incident.

As with other types of contents insurance, policy limits and excesses apply. The best value landlord contents insurance strikes a balance between cost and comprehensive protection.

What is the difference between landlord contents and building insurance?

Landlord building and contents insurance cover very different things.

Contents insurance protects items inside the property and may include extended protection for certain items taken outside too.

Landlord building insurance, on the other hand, generally protects the building itself and can cover the costs of reconstruction. For example, if the building burns down or is flooded. Some insurers will also cover carpets inside the property.

Both offer valuable financial protection to rental property owners. It’s common to take out landlord combined insurance that incorporates both policy terms into a single premium.

A combined policy will often have a single combined limit, e.g. up to £10million per property for the total cost of repairing the building, replacing the contents and any associated loss of rental income.

What does landlord contents insurance cover?

Policy terms can be tailored to your needs, but a typical landlord contents insurance policy might include:

• £10,000 or more cover for white goods, furniture, carpets and curtains.
• Replacement of insured items.
• Full or partial protection against loss of rent if the property is rendered uninhabitable.
• Emergency cover to enable rapid response to an incident.
• Optional extras like accidental damage cover and malicious damage by tenants.

Cheap landlord contents insurance tends to have more restrictive terms, e.g. a £5,000 limit with exclusions for some furniture and fixtures.

Because of this, when you compare landlord contents insurance quotes, you should always check exactly what it covers. If in doubt, feel free to give us a call and we’ll explain what each policy includes.

In addition to all the above, property owners’ contents insurance can also cover additional costs like legal liability (typically up to £5 million) and employers’ liability insurance up to £10 million, in the event of an incident involving a tenant, employee or visitor.

Is landlord contents insurance a legal requirement?

Protecting your possessions is a personal choice – there’s usually no legal obligation.

However, the protection you receive for a relatively small monthly outlay can prove crucial if something like a severe weather event or malicious damage destroys high-value goods.

In some circumstances, you may also be required to take out landlords’ home insurance by your buy-to-let lender, or if you secure any form of credit on the property. The latter often only needs to be building insurance.

Can I buy landlord content insurance as a single policy?

While Bollington can technically provide standalone contents insurance for landlords, we normally combine this with buildings insurance cover. There are certain circumstances in which contents only cover may be required, such as leaseholders in a freehold property where the freeholder holds buildings insurance. Here, we could help you to find policies to meet your needs when this happens.

For most clients, though, it’s worth considering combined building and contents insurance for rental properties. Especially where a property is mortgaged on a buy-to-let basis, mortgage providers require buildings insurance to be in place. Premiums are relatively low for the level of financial protection you receive across your rental portfolio and possessions. Permanent fixtures and fittings can be covered under a buildings insurance policy.

How much does landlord contents insurance cost?

Premiums vary depending on the level of cover, but landlord contents insurance can start from around £120 per property.

When comparing landlord insurance policies, make sure you compare like with like – taking into account any additional areas of cover in each policy, different excesses and the total policy limit.

If you own multiple properties, you may be able to save on your total landlord contents insurance premiums by insuring your entire portfolio under a single policy.

For a bespoke landlord contents insurance quote, contact Bollington and we will be happy to tailor a policy to meet your needs.