Your FAQ Search Results

The cost of unoccupied house insurance will vary depending on factors such as location, rebuild value, property security, property maintenance, and the level of cover you choose.

You can get a quote for unoccupied home insurance today. 

There is no regulation around how often a home must be monitored while the homeowner is away. However, many insurers offering empty property insurance will require regular property checks to maintain the policy.   

Yes, if the property is empty for more than 30 days. Landlord insurance with unoccupied protection is available. 

Probate house insurance covers properties that are empty after the owner has passed away. Because properties are usually left unoccupied during probate, they need to be covered by unoccupied property insurance, and it is usually the responsibility of the executors to make sure this is done while probate is carried out.  

When requesting a quote for coach house home insurance with Homeprotect, please choose the property category that best describes your home, such as detached house, semi-detached house or terrace.  

The term unoccupied does not mean completely empty of all items or furniture – it refers to a property that is not being lived in. Unoccupied often refers to a property that is left in a state in which the homeowner could return to live in at any point. 

After a person passes away and their property is in probate, it needs to be valued. This can often mean that the house is left empty for some time, and in this case it should be protected by unoccupied home insurance for probate. The executor is responsible for ensuring that the right level of cover is in place.    

Properties can be unoccupied for a number of reasons. If it’s your main home, you might be away for an extended period for work or on holiday. A home may also be left empty if an elderly owner has moved into care or during probate. Properties are also often unoccupied if extensive building work is being carried out.

Many unoccupied properties are second homes, which have either been bought as rental properties or inherited. Buy-to-let properties may be empty because of ‘voids’ between tenants, or while undergoing renovation, and holiday homes may be vacant out of season. Inherited properties are frequently left empty while the new owner or owners decides what to do with them, particularly as this type of home may need renovation before it is suitable for rental.

Homeprotect defines an ‘unoccupied home’ as a property that is unfurnished or hasn’t been visited for more than 30 consecutive days.

Coach house cover protects homeowners against insured events such as fire, storm, flood, escape of water, theft, malicious damage, subsidence, landslip or heave.   

While there is no legal obligation to take out any form of house insurance, it can protect your building, contents or both if the worst happens.    

Coach houses are typically considered a ‘non-standard constructed home’. Homeprotect can quote for coach houses as part of a standard home insurance policy, subject to restrictions.   

There are no regulations around how long a homeowner can leave their property unoccupied. However, when it comes to purchasing vacant property insurance with Homeprotect, your home must have been unoccupied for more than 30 days.  

Standard home insurance will not provide the same level of cover for a Bed & Breakfast business. You may well find that house insurance can be harder to get hold of than standard types, due to the fact that you now have a steady stream of guests staying in your home. While you are working from home, you are also at risk of accidental damage and may need to look into liability insurance. Start your quote at Homeprotect to find out what can be covered with our B&B house insurance.

Landlords insurance will provide the property cover you need if you are letting your house to tenants.

You can also take out a holiday home insurance policy if you are renting your house to paying guests at set times of the year. 

Yes, Homeprotect is pleased to offer unoccupied home insurance policies for long periods. If your holiday home will be left vacant during the off-season or between guests for more than 30 days, we can still offer cover. Please read more about our unoccupied home insurance to understand what restrictions apply. 

You only need to visit your property if we’ve asked you to as part of the special terms and conditions of your unoccupied property insurance cover, although it is also a sensible precaution to take.

Empty house insurance covers your premises for losses caused by fire, lightning, explosion, earthquake, smoke, aircraft collision and legal liability. Find out more details on our unoccupied home insurance page.

When a home is left empty for years, it means that no one is around to regulate the temperature and act on the early signs of damage. As a result, long-term unoccupied properties are more susceptible to damp, paint peeling, pests and even wear and tear to the building itself. Plus, these visual signs of neglect also make the property an attractive target to potential intruders.

Leaving a home empty for years also has implications for mortgages and home insurance – which may be invalidated or retracted if the property is unoccupied for a certain period.

Coach house insurance premiums are calculated considering the perceived risk to the provider – based on the value of the home and its contents and the level of cover required.   

This means there is no standard policy cost and premiums will reflect the value of cover provided.   

However, coach house insurance should not typically be more expensive than standard home insurance (relative to the size and value of the property), despite being a non-standard constructed home.  

Unfortunately for homeowners faced with the prospect, there is no such thing as a standard cost for underpinning a house because the works involved are unique to the property, the reasons for underpinning, and the underpinning process used. A structural surveyor will be able to give you an approximate idea of the cost. Of course, if the problem is covered by your home buildings insurance, the cost of underpinning a house shouldn’t be something you need to worry about.

This means that your property will remain fully insured when left unoccupied for up to 30 consecutive days. If you will be away from the property for longer than 30 days it’s important that you contact us to make sure your property is still covered by unoccupied property insurance.

Most insurance providers consider a property to be unoccupied if it’s empty for more than 30 consecutive days. It’s important that you notify your provider if this is going to be the case. After 30 days, different insurers change their cover levels at different cut off points and for different situations: for example, if the property being insured is your main residence, Homeprotect, requires you to arrange for weekly inspection visits to be carried out. Sometimes this is referred to as the 30 day rule by insurers.

Please get in touch with our team so we can update your policy to reflect the fact that your property is now unoccupied.

Homeowners and landlords must be aware of the additional expectations on them when leaving a property unoccupied. Most empty home insurance providers will still require certain conditions to be met with the property, even if it’s not being lived in.  

Insurers will not pay for loss or damage caused by your failure to safeguard your property at all times, so you must take precautions to minimise the risks.  

This could include, but is not limited to, locking all external doors and windows, ensuring that someone checks on the property once a week, and turning off all sources of electricity, fuel and water.  

Unoccupied properties can be more susceptible to risks such as fire, burglary, and other hazards. Find out more about why an empty home is riskier in our guide. 

If you’re planning to leave your home empty for an extended period, there are a few safety and security considerations. Firstly, after 30 days unoccupied, most home insurance policies are void – so, the homeowner would need an empty home insurance policy to protect against theft or damage. Many empty home insurance policies will also expect the home to be inspected regularly, water and electricity to be switched off and more.  

Additional considerations include installing a home security system and using smart devices such as leak detection technology.   

Underpinning is the strengthening and stabilising of the foundations of a house.

Sheds, greenhouses, summer houses, garages, bike stores and other outbuildings within the boundary of your property are all covered in the same way on Homeprotect buildings and contents policies.

Homeprotect will almost certainly be able to insure an underpinned house – but it’s worth getting a quote beforehand. Before contacting us to get a quote, make sure you know:

• Facts about the building’s history including the year that the building was underpinned.
• Details of all claims made, including any relating to subsidence events.
• What the cause of the subsidence was.
• If there has been any ground movement since the event.
• Whether there are any documents confirming that there have been no problems since the previous ground movement event.

House insurance can include public liability cover in some cases. The Homeprotect home insurance policy includes up to £5 million public liability cover. In the event of someone having an accident and being injured in your home, or if their belongings are damaged in your home this insurance cover includes legal cost cover to defend your claim.

Yes, Homeprotect provides cover for an unoccupied property, however, there are some restrictions on the cover offered.

Homeprotect insures homes with thatch roofs in certain circumstances. This includes both straw- and reed-thatched houses. Please call us for a personalised quote.

Probate courts administer the distribution of a deceased person’s assets. This can include selling their property; this is called liquidating the deceased’s assets. The sale of the house is therefore subject to probate law, and buyers may need to attend court to confirm the sale.

Probate courts administer the distribution of a deceased person’s assets. This can include selling their property; this is called liquidating the deceased’s assets. The sale of the house is therefore subject to probate law, and buyers may need to attend court to confirm the sale.  

To make a claim with unoccupied home insurance, you will need to: 

• Have your Policy Document to hand 

• Have proof of ownership and a valuation (e.g. receipts or bank statements) 

• Provide proof of loss along with a full description of what happened 

When you’re ready, log in to submit your claim online or call our claims hotline. 

If it’s empty for 31 to 180 days, your cover is largely standard but with exclusions. Beyond 180 days, long-term unoccupied rules apply. 

Not necessarily! Many of the factors that affect insurance premiums for empty properties are the same as those for occupied homes, such as location and rebuild value. The cost of insurance may be higher for a particular property when it is empty than when it is unoccupied because of higher security risks, or it may be similar but with limitations on what is covered; for example, buildings cover may be limited to fire, lightening, explosion, earthquake and aircraft collision, but not include storm, flood or subsidence.

Just let us know. We’ll update your policy and adjust your cover accordingly. 

Whether or not you drain the water supply to your home before vacating it may depend on the duration of absence and the time of year. While stopping the water supply can prevent risks like burst pipes and flooding, it can also leave your home susceptible to cold temperatures and the negative effects, such as dampness and mould. If you are leaving the property for a short period during the summer, it may be sensible to drain the water supply, while this may not be the best idea when leaving a property for a whole winter.

Whether or not you leave the heating on in an empty home will depend on how long the property is empty and the time of year. During the summer, it may not be necessary to leave home heating on. However, during the winter, heating the home permanently at a low (but above freezing) temperature or on a timer can help prevent pipes from freezing and the property from suffering dampness or mould.

Only if you can prove an insurable interest. Contact our team to discuss your situation.  

 You will need to prove you have an ‘insurable interest’ in the property for Homeprotect to   provide cover. Once confirmed, the probate home insurance policy will usually be issued in  the name of the executor with any beneficiaries named as additional policyholders.  

If your home renovations are valued at £20,000 or above, you will need to let us know, so we can adjust your home insurance policy accordingly. If you don’t you risk invalidating your policy if you attempt to make a claim.

Yes, most UK properties can be let for short-term holiday accommodation. However, various regulations must be met to let your property – including tax considerations, mortgage obligations and additional insurance requirements.  

The main reasons for underpinning are that the structure of a property has become unstable. In turn, this happens when the foundations can no longer adequately support the building because:

• Its usage has changed, for example, because an extension has added which puts extra strain on the foundations of the main building.
• The wrong type of foundation was chosen when the property was designed arising from mis-classification of the soil type.
• The structure of the soil in which the foundations sit has changed, usually because of too much or too little water in it, causing subsidence.

You can claim for the theft of mobile phones (worth less than £1,500 each) inside the home so long as you have Contents insurance (including the optional Full Contents Accidental Damage cover for any accidental damage cover).

For mobile phones worth £1,500 or more or for cover away from the home you need to specify your mobile phones on your policy.

Assuming that subsidence damage has been properly repaired there shouldn’t be a significant impact on the value of your property, however, many buyers will perceive the risk of subsidence recurring as a deterrent. It can also be harder to insure a property with a history of subsidence, unless you use a specialist insurer.

Rotting wood is a risk that every homeowner of a timber frame home will need to get to grips with as time goes on. You can cut away the affected wood and replace it, or alternatively applying a wood preserve or lead paint can make all the difference.

You will be covered if the item accidentally damaged belongs to you and you have specified it on your policy and requested ‘away from home’ cover or upgraded your policy to include ‘personal possessions’ cover away from the property. If the item does not belong to you or you do not have away from home cover, it will not be covered by your Homeprotect home insurance policy. 

If you don’t disclose major building works that you know have been carried out to your property then you could be taken to court later for misrepresentation.

No, tenants are not required to insure their contents but it is advised. Landlords are responsible for insuring the building.

It is recommended to get your flat roof inspected by a professional every 5 years. You can have the survey carried out by a qualified builder, roofer or surveyor. You will need to provide documented proof of the inspection and any repair works in the event of a claim.

You may well have noticed that very few insurers are comfortable with providing cover to childminders. In most cases, insurers believe that a home occupied by other people’s children is an unacceptably high risk. We don’t agree. We understand that childminding is your business, so you should be able to get buildings and contents cover in the same way that anyone else working from home does.

Tell us if your property will be empty for more than 30 consecutive days. We’ll adjust your policy to reflect the increased risk and keep your cover valid. 

The landlord is responsible for maintaining the property in a good state of repair. They will either take care of this directly, or if it is fully managed then via a letting agent. If however you damage the property by accident then you will likely have to pay for repairs, or the cost of repairs will be deducted from your deposit.

With a Homeprotect policy, if your mobile phones are worth less than £1500 each then they’re covered as standard inside the home, although you will need to select the optional full accidental damage cover to protect against accidental damage. If any of your mobile phones are worth more than that individually, you will need to specify them on the policy when you get a quote, to have them included in the cover. Find out more about home insurance including mobile phone cover.

Homeprotect’s buildings insurance will not cover damage to or malfunction of your boiler. However, the optional full home emergency cover optional product, available when you buy your home insurance through Homeprotect, will cover emergency repairs to your boiler as long as it is serviced in accordance with manufacturer’s guidelines.

Homeprotect home insurance covers a wide variety of situations including properties that are let out, as well as properties that are empty for different reasons, such as during voids between tenants.

If your property is usually rented out but will be empty for more than 30 days, you need to let us know.

Because it affects your level of cover. Not telling us may invalidate your policy — and lead to declined claims. 

Yes, you need a valuation for probate. Check our Valuing Property for Probate page to learn more about the process.    

After a person passes away and their property is in probate, it needs to be valued. This can often mean that the house is left empty for some time, and in this case it should be protected by unoccupied home insurance for probate. The beneficiary is responsible for ensuring that the right level of cover is in place.  

Yes, most empty properties will still require the homeowner to pay council tax. However, you may be able to apply for an exemption in a few specific instances. This includes properties that have been unoccupied for two or more years, those undergoing a probate process, instances in which the owner is in the hospital or a care home and if the property cannot be lived in by law.   

See the full list of empty property council tax regulations and exemptions on the government website.   

Empty properties carry greater risks in terms of burglary, vandalism or even squatting, and also the amount of damage caused by unnoticed issues like burst pipes.  

Homeprotect needs to know if your property is unoccupied for more than 30 consecutive days or more so that they can factor these increased risks into your policy terms.  

Yes, we cover any duration — but cover restrictions apply. See above the full details in the main body of this page.

• Fires: covered under fire damage, not AD 
• Wear and tear: never covered 

Typically, a large house is defined as a home with 6 bedrooms or more. By their very nature large houses often have more contents and so high value home insurance is designed to cover properties of a higher net worth than the average UK household.

 When a person passes away and their property is left as an inheritance in their will, it is owned by the beneficiary. The executor of the will’s role is to ensure that the beneficiary is given what they are due as per the will. If there are multiple beneficiaries, then they are co-owners of the property. It is the executor’s responsibility to make sure that the appropriate probate home insurance is in place. For instance, while in probate the building should be protected by unoccupied house insurance.     Executors will often make beneficiaries joint policyholders so that they can also make any changes needed to the policy.

If you’re claiming Housing Benefit, this will be reduced if you earn more than £20 a week from a lodger. If you provide your lodger with meals, only 50% of your income over £20 is used as the income sum which affects your housing benefit calculation. Having a lodger occupy your spare room does, however, exempt you from the ‘bedroom tax’.

Taking in a lodger does not affect Universal Credit payments. The Citizens Advice Bureau offers more information on taking on a lodger.

Each property is different. Use the ABI rebuild calculator for free online to work out the rebuild cost of your house (this is not its market value). For a large house you might prefer to use a professional surveyor to provide an estimate of the rebuild cost. When it comes to contents insurance, you should include every item in the home by going from room to room, including electronics, clothing, kitchen appliances, etc.

Yes, holiday homes require a specialist insurance policy. This is because most standard insurance providers are not prepared to cover holiday homes as they perceive them to be too great a risk.  

This is often because the property can be left unoccupied for more than 30 days at a time between holidays or lets, and because it is not a main residence.  

A house left empty for more than three months at a time, which is often the case when going through probate, is deemed to be more at risk than other homes. For this reason many insurers are reluctant to get involved. Homeprotect aims to give everyone a competitive quote for home insurance online, regardless of how long your property might be empty.

Yes! There is, however, often a minimum policy duration for unoccupied insurance, so if the sale completes within this period, you may not be eligible for a full refund on the unused portion of an annual premium paid in advance. If you’ve chosen to pay monthly, you would still have to pay for the minimum period.

 The cost of probate house insurance will vary depending on factors such as location, rebuild value, property security, property maintenance, and the level of cover you choose.  

You can get a quote for probate house insurance today.   

• Bed and breakfast premises that are paying business rates.  
• Contingent buildings policies, such as those held by banks.  
• Farm outbuildings.  
• Freeholders/leaseholders deriving commercial income by insuring large numbers of properties for a portfolio.  
• Housing association’s residential properties.  
• Multi-use properties under commercial or private ownership.  
• Residential ‘buy to let’ properties that do not meet the criteria specified above.  
• Static caravan site owners when they are being used for commercial gain.  
• In the case of blocks of residential flats, company houses/flats, and social housing contents only can be covered.  

There are several online resources which you can visit to get more information on flood risk in your area, namely:  

• Flood Free Homes wants all UK houses to be free of risk by 2025.  
• National Flood Forum provides support and advice to communities or individuals that have been flooded.  
• Know Your Flood Risk works to raise awareness of the risk of flooding from all sources, not just a visible water course such as rivers and seas.  

All buildings move and settle over the years, sometimes leaving hairline cracks, but these are rarely cause for concern and are only cosmetic. The difference with subsidence is that large cracks appear both inside and outside the property in a very short period of time.

Common symptoms of subsidence include:

• Doors and windows getting ‘stuck’ and becoming harder to open or close.
• Wallpaper buckling in the corners of rooms.
• Cracks appearing in plaster inside the house, often next to doors and windows.
• Cracks appearing in brickwork outside the house.
• Sudden cracks appearing after extremely dry weather.
• Diagonal cracks that are wider than 1mm and wider at the top than the bottom.

This depends on a large number of factors including how widespread the flood was, how severe the damage caused was, and how many properties were affected is the first variable. After a major flood event, insurance companies often take on additional loss adjusters, but even so the time it can take for you to be visited by one can be longer than you’d like.

Cleaning and drying operations can take many weeks or months depending on the availability of services and how greatly your property has been affected, as well as what your home is made of.

Finally, reinstatement works themselves are also time-consuming. The process of choosing replacement furniture, decoration and fitted units (which you may have originally selected over the course of years) takes time, especially if you are working and have little time to shop around, and then you need to wait for delivery and fitting.

If the property is normally occupied but left empty for 31-180 days in a row a year, you’re typically covered, except between 1 October and 1 April inclusive, where escape of water incidents are excluded.

If the property is completely unoccupied and unfurnished, or it’s furnished but unoccupied for more than 180 consecutive days a year, you’re not covered for water damage.

Always check your policy schedule for any ‘endorsements’ (special terms) as these could restrict or exclude cover.

A ‘FLEEA’ policy is a home insurance policy that simply covers against Fire, Lighting, Explosions, Earthquakes and Aircraft or flying objects, compared with a more comprehensive range of risks. At Homeprotect, properties that are left unoccupied for 180 days automatically become FLEEA policies.  

Yes, you should insure holiday homes. If your holiday homes are left unoccupied for more than 30 days at a time, make sure your property is protected between holidays or lets against risks such theft or damage. If you rent your holiday home, it’s also best to ensure you’re covered while there are paying guests staying at your property.

Absolutely! We can insure houses that are used as holiday homes, let to tenants, properties under probate, empty homes up for sale and others. You can get your quote online at a time to suit you. 

Finding out that your quote has been referred means that your quote is being checked by our team of in-house expert underwriters. The accurate insurance risks of your property and/or your circumstances will be taken into account in the calculation of your personalised policy.

Problems occur when homeowners overlook items, often missing out entire categories in a given estimate, purely because the scope is so vast. You might look around your room, listing the items you can see and calculating their value, but neglect to include rugs or cookware. Items that are kept stored out of sight are also at particular risk of being forgotten, such as garden tools, luggage, linen, clothes (an average person’s clothing alone could cost over £10,000 to replace), and food and drink. You should make sure you account for absolutely everything when working out how much to insure for.

It’s also important to be aware of any changes to replacement costs that may arise from time to time, for example, if the price of precious metals changes.

Visit every room in your home (including the attic, shed and cupboards under the stairs!) And list all your belongings including curtains, kitchen equipment, luggage etc. Research how much it would cost to replace each item as new and then add up the full amount you’d need to replace everything. 

We normally cover the amount you specify, however if you enter a very low amount your policy may include more than this, if this is the case you will be made aware of this before purchasing.

We exclude cover from unoccupied vehicles.

Contact your home buildings insurance provider who will guide you through the best course of action to take. Usually, a surveyor or engineer will be dispatched to make an assessment.

Often cases of subsidence can be handled quickly and effectively without requiring foundation repairs, but where foundation work does become necessary it can be costly and disruptive.

To give yourself the best possible chance of avoiding underpinning (or similar repairs) then it is in your interest to contact your insurer as soon as you notice a potential problem. Tree control measures might be taken, or leaky pipes surveyed and repaired, and in some cases little more will need to be done than some cosmetic repair/redecoration.

The majority of listed buildings in the UK are grade 2 buildings, and although the cost of insurance varies for every property, listed buildings insurance generally has a high premium. This is because rebuilding an older property often requires specialist tradespeople and materials which are not readily available.

The cost of underpinning a house varies considerably depending on the size of the property and the underpinning technique used. A suitably qualified structural engineer will be able to give you an indicative price for the cost of underpinning foundations.

The subsidence excess is the amount that you must pay when making a claim for subsidence. This is usually a one-off payment of a set amount. Subsidence is caused by the downward movement of the ground beneath a house.

If you furnish your let property you’ll need insurance to protect the items you supply against fire and theft. Contents include furniture, household utensils, electrical equipment, soft furnishings such as lampshades, and curtains and blinds. You can choose the level of cover you need as appropriate and you only pay for the amount of cover you choose.

Homeprotect landlord buildings cover includes £7,500 per claim for your contents in let property.

If the contents are worth more than this, you need to add landlord contents insurance to your policy.

This cover is often not very expensive, but it’s invaluable to make sure you’re not out of pocket in the event you’d need to claim.

No, buildings insurance is not compulsory but it is strongly advised to protect your property and cover the costs of repairing or rebuilding the house. If you have a mortgage, then having adequate buildings insurance will usually be a condition from your lender.

Flat roofs have a tendency to leak. This is particularly the case when flat roofs are not laid correctly or when they have been neglected for some time. Regular maintenance of flat roofs is often a condition of your insurance policy.

You must inform your insurance provider of changes to your home such as letting a room to lodgers, making structural renovations, installing a burglar alarm or door locks, leaving the house empty for more than 30 consecutive days.

Yes, Homeprotect provides cover for let-to-tenant properties, second homes, holiday homes, weekend/weekday only homes and unoccupied properties.

Yes, Homeprotect provides cover for an unoccupied property even if it’s up for sale. However, there will be some restrictions on the cover offered.

When you make a claim, the incident details you provide are shared with other insurers in line with industry practice. This could influence the price or availability of insurance offered to you in the future as insurers often set their prices based on previous incidents you’ve had. 

That’s why it’s important to understand your cover before submitting a claim. You can check your cover by logging in here and entering the details of an incident. We’ll give you guidance on what you’re covered for to help you decide whether to submit a claim. 

You must inform your insurance provider of changes to your home such as letting a room to lodgers, making structural renovations, installing a burglar alarm or door locks, leaving the house empty for more than 30 consecutive days.

Home insurance is a type of insurance policy that covers losses and damages to an individual’s house building and their belongings which are kept at home.

The most common cause of subsidence is the shrinkage of soils, particularly clay types, as moisture is extracted from them. This often occurs as a result of tree roots growing under the property, which becomes more likely in extended periods of hot and dry weather.  

Another common cause is drain leakage, where water escapes from underground pipes and washes away (or softens) soils so that they are no longer able to support the weight of the foundations. It can also occur as a result of a history of mining excavations beneath or around your home, so it is always worth checking for these before buying a property.  

When a person passes away and their property is left as an inheritance, it is owned by the beneficiary. If there are multiple beneficiaries, then they are co-owners of the property. It is the beneficiary’s responsibility to make sure that the appropriate probate home insurance is in place. For instance, while in probate the building should be protected by unoccupied house insurance.  

Many of the factors that affect insurance premiums for empty properties are the same as those for occupied homes, such as location and rebuild value.   

The cost of unoccupied home insurance may be higher for a particular property because of higher security risks, or it may be similar but with limitations on what is covered. For example, buildings cover may be limited to fire, lightning, explosion, earthquake and aircraft collision, but not include storm, flood or subsidence.

We make it easy for you to get an online quote, even if you have complex arrangements such as your property is unoccupied, has had previous subsidence, you are taking in a lodger or someone in the property has a Criminal Conviction.

The exact cost of an HMO license varies by local authority – however, they typically cost anywhere from hundreds to over one thousand pounds for a new license. However, this cost is relatively minor compared with the potential fine for failing to present a valid license.    

It’s important to remember that HMO licenses expire after a maximum of five years, and landlords will need to reapply to extend this license – paying an additional fee for the license each time. However, this cost is often reduced for previous license holders.  

When it comes to Stamp Duty taxes, a second home is simply defined as any additional property owned alongside a primary residence.  

Stamp Duty is also charged at a higher rate for additional properties, compared with a first home or primary residence. For second homes valued up to £250,000, Stamp Duty is charged at 3% of the house price – rising to 8% for properties valued between £250,001 and £925,000.  

It depends on your lifestyle, habits, and what you want covered. If you have young children, host guests often, It depends on your lifestyle, habits, and what you want covered. 

If you have young children, host guests often, or own expensive items prone to accidents (like TVs, laptops or sound systems), you may benefit from accidental damage cover. 

But it’s also important to weigh it against your excess. For example: 

• If you have a £149 compulsory excess and chose a £250 voluntary excess, you’d only be able to claim for incidents worth more than £399 

Also consider whether accidental damage cover is the best way to protect valuable items. If you’re only concerned about a couple of high-value possessions, it might be more cost-effective to specify those items individually on your policy. This can provide cover for theft and physical damage, even without accidental damage cover. 

For full details of what’s covered under Basic or Full Accidental Damage, refer to Sections 1a/1b (Buildings) and 2a/2b/2c (Contents) in the policy booklet. 

Yes you can insure  a property that’ s up for sale — if it’s been left empty for more than 30 days, you’ll need unoccupied cover. 

There may be exclusions stated in your policy and it’s very important that you read and understand these exclusions. Examples of things that may not be covered are basements and their contents, as well as items such as money, precious metal and important paperwork kept in the house.  

For homes in England, this can be done instantly and for free simply by entering property’s postcode and house number on the Government’s long term flood risk assessment page which also includes links to flood risk information and maps for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This tells you how likely it is that the specific location is to flood in the future, and the factors that could cause or contribute to flooding there, as well as where to get information on preparing for a flood and how to sign up for flood warnings.  

The Government portal also provides a map where you can enter your postcode to see a map showing the flood risk from rivers or the sea, or the flood risk from surface water. Use it’s ‘detailed view’ option to see depth, flow speed and flow direction estimates. 

Flood Re is a flood risk home insurance scheme, designed to make flood cover more affordable for UK homeowners which has been in place since 4 April 2016.  

The Flood Re scheme enables insurers to take on more customers at risk of flooding because the consequences of large claims are shared between insurers. This happens behind the scenes, so customers can compare and purchase home insurance as they would normally.  

Visit the Flood Re website for further details.  

• Properties must be located within the UK mainland.  
• Properties must have a Council Tax band A to H.  
• Properties must be built before 1st January 2009. Note: If a property has been demolished and rebuilt before this date, then the new building is still eligible for Flood Re.  
• Properties must be used for residential purposes.  
• Properties must have an individual premium.  
• Leasehold flats with three or less fewer units are eligible.  
• The policyholder or their immediate family must live in the home for some or all of the time, or the property must be unoccupied.  
• The insurance contract must be in the name of one or more individuals, not companies.  

You can find the full eligibility criteria on the Flood Re website.  

Yes. Each property needs its own policy, and we tailor cover based on how the second home is used.  Depending on your situation, Homeprotect provides second home insurance for rental properties, second home insurance for holiday homes, and second home insurance for homes left unoccupied.   

It can be, depending on how the property is used, how secure it is, and how long it’s left unoccupied. 

The main difference between a holiday home and a second home is the amount of time the homeowner resides in the property. Second homes are typically seen as secondary permanent residences that the homeowner spends a significant amount of time in – such as part of each week. Holiday homes are sometimes unoccupied for extended periods, with some homeowners only using the property for short stays a few times a year. 

In theory, yes. However, it is a recent law that you should check a person’s immigration status before leasing a room. Checking that they have the right to live in the UK is a law which the Government imposed on private landlords in December of 2014. Visit gov.uk for more information on the right to rent.

What does referred mean? If you have just found out that your quote has been “referred” or “sent for referral”, the details shown here should help explain what that is and what to expect.

We appreciate you were probably hoping to obtain a quote quickly, however, in this instance your quote has been sent to our in-house underwriting team to be checked to make sure it provides enough cover for your insurance needs.

It depends on what type of work you do at the property, for example if it is admin work then you don’t need to tell us about this and you’ll be covered.

However, if you have a registered business at your property, e.g. If you run a child minding business at home or if you have clients visiting the property then you will need to make us aware of this.

Note that this may result in an additional premium amount being payable and conditions being placed on your policy.

As soon as we have checked that your claim is covered by your policy, we will get the process moving. Straightforward claims are normally settled very quickly, and in all cases our claims team will keep you informed of progress.

Some larger value claims, for example an extensive house fire, can take months for the damage to be fully repaired, or the property rebuilt, and your family moved back into the property.

You can make unlimited claims on your policy. However, this may affect your policy premium and/or the terms, such as your excesses, when you renew. Incident details you provide us with are also shared with other insurers in line with industry practice. This could influence the price or availability of insurance offered to you in the future as insurers often set their prices based on previous incidents you’ve had.

Buildings insurance covers the structure of the home together with its fixtures and fittings: it covers the cost of repair or rebuilding after fire or weather damage for instance. Contents insurance covers the contents of your home, the possessions you would take with you if you moved house.

It’s important that you tell your home insurance provider that you have a new extension and that the roof is flat as it may affect the cover available under your policy. The Homeprotect policy will cover you for flat roof damage and any resulting damage to the room and belongings housed beneath the flat roof, just as long as you have told us about the flat roof, and that it is regularly checked and maintained.

When you are refused insurance it means that the provider has decided not to provide cover for your property or belongings. This may be because you do not meet the terms of their underwriters, or it may be because of a change in your circumstances which means you are perceived to be a greater risk to insure.

When applying for insurance, if you do not, when asked, tell your insurer something that is relevant such as having a criminal conviction, then you could be refused house insurance.

There is no need to turn off gas or electricity for insurance reasons and, in fact, it can be a good idea to arrange for lights to come on using a timer switch to deter burglars.

You only need to turn off your mains water if we’ve asked you to as part of the terms and conditions of your unoccupied property insurance cover, although it is also a sensible precaution to take.

When you purchased the property a homebuyer’s survey is likely to have included the date of construction. 

Alternatively, your local authority may have a record of when planning permission was granted to build the property. Your neighbours may also have an idea of when the property was built.

Note: A rough estimate of the property construction date is enough for the purposes of getting your home insurance quote.

If you have a heritage property, here are some steps to take:

• Search for your property for free in the 1862 Act register on Land Registry’s digital archives.
• Look at the architectural style and features of the house, particularly the roof and windows.
• Check your county record offices, local parish records or ask to view local archives at your library.
• Look for old copies of Ordnance Survey maps for your area (local library).
• Google for a local historian or a historical society and contact them to see if they can help you.
• Look at census data between 1841 and 1911 to find the first year that the address was mentioned.

Yes — if clients or business contacts visit your home. Public Liability is included as standard and can, depending on your business use, cover legal liability for injury or property damage to third parties (excluding employees).

Typically no. Standard home insurance won’t cover rental activities. Homeprotect offers tailored policies for homes with paying guests, including those using house-sharing platforms like Airbnb. 

However, this isn’t the same as dedicated host insurance. Theft or damage caused by Airbnb guests is not covered. 

If your property is left unoccupied for more than 30 days or let to guests, you’ll likely need holiday home insurance. A second home used regularly as a residence may be eligible for different cover.