Home renovation insurance
If you are carrying out home renovation works, it’s important to make sure you and your property are fully protected. Howden's renovation home insurance provides cover should the unexpected happen while your property is undergoing renovation.
What does home renovation insurance cover?
Your buildings
Howden’s home renovation insurance will protect your property against a range of risks while building works are being carried out
Subsidence, heave and landslip
The cost of repairing structural damage caused by subsidence, heave or landslip. Garages, sheds and fences are also included, as well as the cost of repairing items such as pipes, cables and drains.
Unoccupancy
Cover for your property while it’s empty pending renovation. Although be sure to read your policy wording for full unoccupied terms and conditions.
Need standard home insurance?
If you don't have specialist requirements, take a look at Howden's range of standard home insurance policies.
Renovation home insurance. FAQs.
Unfortunately, it’s a sad truth that unoccupied homes are more at risk of dangers such as fire, theft and water damage (amongst other things) than properties that are visited on a daily basis. Equally, if something were to happen at the property (such as a leaky pipe), it would take longer for someone to notice the problem and mitigate the issue, during which time extensive damage could be caused.
Therefore, it’s very important to notify your insurer if your property is going to be unoccupied for a prolonged period of time, as they will usually have certain terms and conditions that apply for unoccupied properties. Check your policy documents to find out exactly what’s covered, as not adhering to the policy terms and conditions could have a negative impact on a future claim.
If your property is unoccupied, your insurer will usually ask you to do the following:
- Secure the property against intruders
- Arrange for the property to be visited on a weekly basis (this could be a friend, relative or managing agent)
- Collect post regularly to prevent a pile-up, as this can pose a fire risk
- Switch off all services at the mains, apart from the electricity where it’s required to maintain any fire or intruder alarm systems
- Drain the water and heating system
The cost of your unoccupied home insurance will depend on a number of factors. As with your home insurance, the value of your property will have an impact on the price of your unoccupied home insurance policy, as well as the location of the property. If your property is in an area that sees a high rate of theft, for example, then your insurance premium is likely to reflect this. When shopping for a policy, it’s also worth comparing the policy covers of different insurers to check that they’re like-for-like, as additional policy covers will usually result in a slightly higher premium.
However, some insurers will also offer reduced premiums for upgrading or adding security features to your property, so it’s always worth asking when obtaining a quote.
Find out about any excesses you may have to pay in the event of a claim. An ‘excess’ is the initial amount you must pay yourself if you are making a claim on your unoccupied home insurance policy, and the amount of your excess payment will usually be specified in your insurance policy documents. You can often decrease the cost of your insurance policy by choosing to pay a slightly higher excess amount than standard, and vice versa.
Interested in renovation home insurance?
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