UKInsuranceNet

Insurance, an increasing problem for property undergoing building works

Few people realise the impact that significant building works can have on their home insurance. Not advising your insurance company that you are extending your property, or that it is undergoing significant renovation can leave you in breach of your policy terms and conditions and therefore uninsured! In addition even if you do advise your insurer they may reduce cover to the basics such as fire and flood, and exclude things like accidental damage or theft. We therefore strongly urge people to check the policy wording of their home insurance to ensure they are adequately covered before proceeding with an extension or major renovation.

Often people decide to take advice from a specialist broker such as UKinsuranceNET to ensure that they have adequate cover in place.

UKinsuranceNET have a team that specialise solely in unusual residential risks such as landlords insurance and extension insurance. Full cover can be provided whether the property is occupied or unoccupied.

Extension Insurance

Extension insurance is easier to obtain than most insurance relating to significant building works. The main reason for this is that the property can remain occupied and therefore is likely to be acceptable to a mainstream insurer. We recommend the first course of action is to contact your insurer and gain permission for the work to be carried out. Assuming that it is acceptable to your insurer the next step is to ensure that you are happy with any term imposed.

Renovation Insurance

Extensive renovation generally results in a property becoming unoccupied. Because of this it is unlikely a standard home insurance company will find this an acceptable risk. Cover available will depend on the extent of the work being carried out, and by whom. Employing a reputable contractor who carries public liability insurance will give you the widest range of cover. If you are doing the work yourself, in particular any electrical or plumbing work, then you may find that you have to accept restricted cover.

Conversion Insurance

Converting a property from one dwelling unit into multiple units will require a specialist insurer. We often find that the insurer will insist that some if not all of the works are carried out by a qualified contractor, again the contractor must carry the relevant public liability insurance. The reason for this is that conversion often results in significant structural alterations, and reasonably enough the insurer wants the work to be carried out by qualified personnel. If you have existing relevant experience that qualifies you for this kind of work you may still be able to obtain cover, however, without separate public liability cover you may only be offered restricted cover which means for example no accidental damage cover.