The state of the Landlord Insurance market – March 2021

The past year has been tough on most due to COVID, however, Landlords can take heart from a very healthy insurance market that continues to compete for their let buildings and contents insurance. The cost of landlord insurance depends largely on the insurer that you speak with. Axis, Channel, Accelerant, Ocaso and Arkel are all offering great policies and prices right now.

If you have a block of flats then Property 118’s partner, The Home Insurer, has options from Axis that are hard to beat, complete with up to £5m Property Owners Liability, 33% loss of rent, malicious damage/accidental damage include, free £100k Directors and Officers and £100k of legal expenses all bundled together.

If you have a standard let with AST in place, then Ocaso, a five-star defaqto rated insurer is right on the money and includes 45-days unoccupancy as standard with every policy. That can be boosted to 90-days if you like too.

Sublet or rent to rent policies are becoming more popular, but there is still a limited appetite for these risks with insurers. We have Amlin and Channel ready to quote but do expect it to cost a little more than a standard let insurance policy, after all, the risk is higher as the contract with the tenant is not with you the landlord.

Portfolio landlords have lots of options right now. If you own more than 4 properties, then we can bring them together with Axis, Channel or Ocaso and offer decent volume savings. Bringing them together to renew on the same date simplifies administration as well. There are suites of benefits to choose from whether unoccupancy, renovation, contents included etc. etc.

Hiscox’s well publicised issues following the FCA’s court case on COVID cover appears to have impacted on the markets we have access to. If you have a Hiscox policy keep an eye out for the renewal price and make sure both it and the terms are similar to last year. If they aren’t then get in touch we can probably save you money.

Flood cover remains a challenge for landlords in at risk areas. There is no obligation to provide any cover but The Home Insurer has two providers willing to at least listen and consider offering terms – Aviva and Channel. If you have flooded recently, then we can also offer the new Flood Flash technology that gives cash pay outs within days if floods happen. Just be minded it is a last ditch insurance and premiums are high but at least cover is available if absolutely required.

Unoccupied and renovation insurance for landlords is extremely strong at the moment. It’s a great time if you are planning refurbishment or unoccupancy, prices are lower in our view than a year ago and in some cases cost less than let insurance with tenants in place.

There has been an increase in landlord legal expense insurance interest. In some cases it is being viewed as a substitute for rent guarantee insurance during eviction bans, although it will not pay out any rent to you. For others it is potentially a future help for any ‘Breathing Space’ legislation arguments that are yet to come, although how much help is yet to be determined. Either way it offers legal advice to landlords for all the normal items from eviction to rent arrears.

Overall prices are very similar/same to 12-months ago, with possibly up to a maximum of 6% increase in prices with inflation depending on insurer if all risk items remain the same.

If you are looking to try and save some money on your landlord insurance then do give Property 118’s partner, The Home Insurer’ an opportunity to quote. Tell them the basic details of the policy, benefits you need and renewal price. They will do all they can to beat your price and will make sure you have the right policy for your needs. Just contact us using the form below or call 01832 770965

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