Need help with home insurance? Find out more by reading our useful guides!
Need to know more before making a decision? We’ve taken the time to answer some frequently asked questions so you have all the information you need when you go to get a quote.
Tenants’ insurance is a type of home insurance which provides cover for those renting a property.
Tenant insurance (otherwise known as contents insurance for renters or renters’ insurance) will protect your belongings against certain risks (such as fire, theft or storm damage) and can even provide cover for alternative accommodation in the event of something unexpected happening to your home.
Renters’ insurance will prevent you being left out of pocket should something unexpected happen to your things, such as your belongings being stolen, or destroyed in a fire. And you can even personalise your policy to include additional cover such as accidental damage or home emergency cover.
You may be thinking “Is renters’ insurance really necessary?”. If you’d like to protect your belongings whilst they’re in your rented property then yes, you’ll need to look for the best home renters’ insurance to suit you. Although having tenant house insurance isn’t a legal requirement in the UK, it’s a sensible option to protect your belongings against the unexpected.
Plus, many landlords encourage and even make it a requirement for tenants to take out tenants’ liability insurance and this is sometimes included in your tenant’s insurance. So you can make sure both your belongings and your landlord’s fixtures and fittings are covered under one simple policy.
Who pays insurance on a rental property?
The landlord will insure the building, however, it would be the tenants’ responsibility to put contents (and tenants’ liability) insurance in place on a rental property. As a tenant, this is to protect your own belongings and any of the landlord’s fixtures and fittings. Insurance will protect the home’s contents in the event of something unexpected happening, for example, a fire, flood or burglary.
If you’re concerned about your budget, tenant insurance costs may not be as expensive as you think.
The cost of tenants insurance will vary depending on your exact circumstances. For example, your quote will depend on the total cost of your home’s contents, your home security and so on. The average cost of renters’ insurance will vary across insurer and it’s always worth checking directly with insurance providers, rather than just on comparison sites.
We know that having your own place isn’t cheap. Here are some ideas to lower the cost of your renters’ insurance in the UK.
1) Calculate your contents carefully
Accurately calculating your home’s contents will make sure that you don’t over-insure. It’ll also help make certain that you’re completely covered if you need to make a claim.
2) Pay annually
Although you’ll usually be able to choose to pay monthly for your renters’ insurance to save on upfront costs, paying annually is usually cheaper overall.
3) Increase your excess
Increasing your voluntary excess amount may reduce your overall renters’ insurance cost.
4) Build your no claims bonus
Building your no claims bonus (otherwise known as no claims discount) could help you save money. After you renew your policy, you could compare your tenants’ insurance cost with last year’s to see how much of a difference your NCB made.
Are you a renter or a tenant? In terms of rental property insurance, a tenant and a renter is the same thing in the UK. A renter is someone who rents a property, vehicle or object for money. A tenant is someone who occupies land or property which is rented from a landlord. For this reason, tenant insurance is referred to as various different terms such as home renters’ insurance and tenants’ contents insurance to name a few.
Tenants’ insurance vs contents insurance
If you’re wondering how tenants’ insurance in the UK differs with contents insurance, it doesn’t! Tenants’ insurance is just a version of home contents insurance specifically for renters.
There are lots of different reasons why renters’ insurance is worth taking out.
For starters, it can save you a lot of money should something unexpected happen to your belongings at home. For example, if someone broke into your property and stole your things, could you afford to re-purchase them? Contents insurance for tenants makes sure that you’re covered in lots of different circumstances such as theft, fire and flood. And you can even add additional protection for accidental damage, legal and home emergency cover.
As well as the financial savings, tenant insurance allows you to go about your life with one less thing to worry about – letting you live your life fully, whilst your insurance protects your things at home.
When you take out tenant rental insurance, you’ll need to provide certain information about the property (such as what security is in place and the value of the contents within the property).
It’s really important to make sure you calculate the cost of your belongings properly to make sure you’re fully covered.
Imagine this. You estimate your home’s contents to be around £10,000. Later in the year, your home is involved in a fire. Thankfully no one is hurt, but on sorting your contents insurance claim, you realise your contents are actually worth around the £20,000 mark. This means you’d only be able to claim for the amount on your policy – £10,000.
The easiest way to accurately calculate the value of your belongings is to go through each room and tally them up. It’s worth noting that higher value items will need to be specified on your insurance policy (things like fine art or jewellery).
You should also take note of the types of things covered under rental property insurance. Most insurers will cover things like clothes, furniture, personal items and electrical goods.
Some insurers will include tenants’ liability cover which will protect your landlord’s fixtures and fittings whilst you’re renting.
No you don’t. Your landlord is responsible for taking out buildings insurance. However, if you wish to make sure your belongings are protected, plus your landlord’s fixtures and fittings, it will be your responsibility to take out home renters’ insurance.
The tenant is responsible for all damage that occurs to a property whilst the property is under their care. Unfortunately this means that if, for example, your property is furnished and you damaged a piece of your landlord’s furniture, you would be responsible for any repairs to make things right. This is where tenants’ liability insurance comes in, as it covers your landlord’s fixtures and fittings; meaning you could claim on your insurance for the repair.
A landlord may require the tenant to purchase renters’ insurance as part of their tenancy agreement. However, it’s more likely that they require you to take out tenants’ liability insurance which will provide cover for the fixtures and fittings in the property that are owned by them, but are your responsibility as a tenant. Taking out renters’ insurance will usually provide cover for both your belongings and your landlord’s fixtures and fittings together under one policy.
As with all insurance policies, there are a few things that aren’t covered.
- Wear and tear
- Costs for maintenance
- Damage caused by your pets
- Your excess as stated in your policy documents
- Theft or vandalism caused by you or any person who is lawfully in your home
- Cover will be restricted if your property is left unoccupied for more than 30 days
If you’re living in halls, you may actually already have cover as part of your tenancy, head here to check.
You might also like student contents insurance, buildings and contents insurance, first time buyer insurance, private clients insurance, teacher home insurance or contents insurance.
