To Cover or not to Cover?
Last month’s report of the Essex landlord, left with a £47,000 repair bill on his property, after damage caused by a tenant, is becoming an all to common story. Along with the damage caused, the landlord also found himself out of pocket to the tune of £12,200 in rent arrears not to mention the cost of legal services due to the eviction notices he had to serve.
Even when a landlord or letting agency takes all the necessary precautions, tenant referencing, credit checks, deposit paid, and all seems well, the keys are handed over…..what then?
In the instance of the above landlord, the checks came back positively glowing, but 6 months down the line once his wife left him, his behaviour became volatile and he reacted by going on a one-man rampage around his home….only it wasn’t his own home, the property belonged to someone else, his landlord. As a result, he’d dragged doors off hinges, left huge gaping drill holes in the walls, killed the rear garden by dousing it in paraffin and setting fire to his wife’s clothes. He left 34 bin bags of household refuse and had also attempted to knock down an interior, dividing supporting wall. Lovely!
Although many landlords only arm themselves with minimum insurance cover, it’s important that they cover themselves for any loss caused by this kind of behaviour. A policy should be scrutinised to ensure they are covered, what they are covered for and if they are correctly covered. There are a number of insurance policies that cover landlords and buy-to-let properties.
*Landlords Household Insurance:
This covers against risks associated with letting your property to tenants and covers loss of rent up to a certain percentage following an insured event, Public & employers liability, malicious damage made by a tenant, accidental damage.
This is a great option, offering a much cheaper alternative to landlords with lager portfolios, as it is a block cover.
*Rent Guarantee Cover is also another popular insurance.
Obviously policies differ, but can act as an added safeguard. Insurance policies for landlords now can cover items from building to boilers and anything in-between, but all-in-all it gives a landlord that peace of mind, assures the nerves and allays the anxiety.
By
Madalena Penny
