As a landlord, it is vital that you properly safeguard every aspect of your portfolio.
Should there ever be issues with collecting rent, damage to your contents, a home emergency, or an injury that you are liable for, you could be out of pocket and unable to afford the costs of maintaining your property.
There are policies tailored to the risks landlords face that can provide vital cover for realities of working in property ownership. Find out more below.
Landlord liability
Should a tenant injure themselves on your property from such hazards as loose tiles or an ill-fitted carpet, then you could be held liable. If the injury leads to a lawsuit, a liability policy can assist you with:
- Your legal costs in defending a claim.
- Damages awarded to the claimant.
- The claimant’s legal costs, if you are found to be at fault.
Are your properties furnished? You might want to consider Contents Insurance
It is standard practice for most landlords to let their properties on the condition that the tenant can prove they have a contents insurance policy ready to be put in place on the day of the move.
However, if your properties are furnished or semi-furnished, you might want to think about getting your own policy.
Apart from Christmas, the highest surge in burglaries happens across summer, whilst every other month sees a low trend in attempted break ins.*
Leaving doors and windows open or unlocked due to the rise in temperature can invalidate claims made in the event of theft, so it's worthwhile to encourage your tenants to reduce criminal opportunity where possible and show caution with any valuables.
Do you have a buy-to-let mortgage?
Most landlords will usually have a buy-to-let mortgage in place.
Many providers will also insist that you have loss-of-rent insurance to cover your rent should you not have a tenant for an extended amount of time, or if your current tenant can’t (or won’t) pay the rent.
Loss-of-rent cover also protects you, should a fire or flood make your property uninhabitable. Your tenant will no longer be required to pay you rent, which could put your mortgage in jeopardy.
*West Yorkshire Police Department
