Landlord insurance for DSS tenants

A DSS tenant is a renter who claims housing benefits under the Department for Social Security. The tenant rents privately, but receives support via housing benefits or Universal Credit, usually due to being unemployed, disabled or a single parent.

It’s sensible to have landlord insurance in place no matter who you rent to. Landlord buildings insurance may even be a condition of your mortgage provider. Landlord insurance provides you with financial protection in many different circumstances.

However, there are some types of tenants that some insurers won’t provide cover for. Unfortunately, DSS tenants can sometimes fall into this category due to the stigma around them having a lower/unstable income.

However, there are insurance providers out there, like Protect My Let (also part of Howden), who have a huge range of cover options to protect multiple types of tenants, including DSS tenants!

Protect My Let are a team of experts in landlord insurance (and real people!) who are dedicated to finding you the best landlord cover at the right price.

Just like Endsleigh, Protect My Let are a part of Howden. We’ve joined forces with them to get you the best service possible.

You can still cover single properties with Endsleigh – getting a quote in minutes.

And now you can also cover your whole portfolio with Protect My Let.

Here are some key features of Protect My Let’s landlord insurance for DSS tenants:

• Buildings and/or contents cover, including fixtures and fittings in flats
• Accidental damage caused by tenants
• Property owner liability
• Malicious damage and theft by tenants
• Trace and access cover
• Complete cover for buildings (fire, subsidence, storm, escape of water, flood, vandalism)
• Cover for different construction types
• Terrorism cover
• Loss of rent / alternative accommodation cover
• Portfolio cover (one renewal date for all your rentals)
• Landlord legal expenses cover
• Tenancy eviction cover i.e. serving eviction notices
• Pursuit of rent arrears

It’s your choice who you let your property to. However, thanks to a ruling at York County Court in 2020, it is now seen as unlawful and a breach of the equality act to put a blanket ‘no DSS’ rule on your rental property.

The basis of the ruling was that a ‘no DSS’ policy put women and disabled people at a higher disadvantage as they were more likely to receive housing benefit.

You could show your willingness to demonstrate an indiscriminatory approach to being a landlord by remaining outwardly open-minded about DSS tenants.

Not always. If your tenant works over 16 hours per week, they may be classed as a working or professional tenant. Speak to Protect My Let’s team to find out more.

Yes, Protect My Let’s policies can cover a range of different situations like this. Just get in touch with them to find out more.

You might need to change your policy when it renews. But it’s always best to update your insurer in any change of circumstance. This is so they have all the correct risk information.

Yes, Protect My Let offer multi-property insurance where your whole portfolio is covered on one policy. This can save you time and money as you’ll have one renewal date and get a portfolio discount!