Holiday home insurance

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What is holiday home insurance?

Holiday homes are in many ways more vulnerable than your permanent home, as they are left unoccupied for most of the time. Insurance will therefore cover you if you find any surprises when you visit, such as a leak or a burglary. Normal home insurance will not cover a holiday home because it will be empty for more than 30 days in a year, and therefore you will need to take out specific holiday home insurance. 

Types of holiday home insurance

Holiday homes vary, and therefore the type of insurance will vary as well. There are a few typical policies: 

• Cabins and chalets: Make sure you are covered for the outbuildings and hot tubs
• UK holiday homes: Growing in popularity, it’s seen as a good investment. You should look for accidental damage, break ins, and general weather risks such as storm cover. 
• Overseas: These are the most likely to be left unoccupied for a long period of time. You should make sure you have emergency travel and an insurer that can help with repairs overseas. Most companies will offer insurance within major European countries, but you must of course check first. 

What will be covered?

This will depend, as any insurance policy, on what type of cover you get. But there are a few typical categories that will be covered: 

• Building and contents cover 
• Personal possessions cover 
• Emergency travel 
• 24 hour emergency helpline 

How long can I leave it empty?

This will depend on your policy, but usually they will allow you to keep your holiday home empty with no time limit. It’s important to check the policy and make sure you are covered in case it does end up being empty for a long time. 

Can I still rent out the property?

You can still rent the property out if you are not there but you should look at policies that will cover a few extra things. These include: 

• Loss of rent: If your property is damaged and you therefore are unable to collect rent while you repair. 
• Accidental damage to the property 
• Emergency accommodation: If the property is damaged and the renters need somewhere to stay. 
• Public liability: If the renters are injured while they are there and it’s your fault, this will cover your legal expenses. These costs can run high so limits to this cover can be in the millions, it just depends how much you want to pay for your premiums. 

How can I save money on my holiday home insurance?

There are a few ways you can try and save money on your holiday home insurance 

Combining Insurance

Most insurers will allow you to combine building and contents insurance together which could save you money. 

Excess

The excess is the amount of money you agree to pay out in the event of a claim. The more excess you agree to, the less you will have to pay for your premiums. But make sure you can afford it should you have to make a claim. 

Security 

A surefire way to make sure you limit your exposure to break ins is to increase your security. This means making sure you have high quality locks, and an alarm system to deter burglars. If you leave the property unlocked it will usually void your policy. 

Shop around

When taking out an insurance policy it’s important to compare insurance to make sure you get the best deal suited to your needs. Here at usave, we help you compare home insurance deals from multiple providers. Just fill in a few details and our comparison tool will get quotes for you to compare. 

Maintenance 

By keeping your holiday home in check, it will be less likely that you have to pay for expensive repairs such as a burst pipe. It might even be worth paying someone to check on your home periodically. 

Avoid wrong valuations

When it comes to buildings insurance, make sure you know exactly how much the value of your house is when it needs to be repaired. If you overestimate when it comes to applying for a policy you could end up paying a higher premium than necessary.