Insurance for unoccupied property

[markcarlisle]

Is it true that empty houses are statistically more likely to be broken into, catch fire, have burst pipes etc, than occupied houses? This would mean thieves prefer breaking into houses with little or nothing in them to steal, and that vandals will more likely set fire to an empty house than a house being set fire to by unwitting occupants, etc. I have a house which is vacant for a few months until builders renovate it, and I got a shock when the buildings insurance premium went sky high with a 250% increase and with a huge reduction in the number of risks covered - I no longer have cover for theft! I would love to know if the insurers are ripping me off or are being truthful with this "statistical higher risk" and if so, how much higher the risk is. Are there any web sites for this sort of info?

[pusspuss]

hi a few years ago i had a similar problem ,the only insurance that i could get was what is called flea (fire explosion )insurance,the estate agents that i spoke to explain that with the house being empty for a few months it was high risk and that the insurance would not be worthwhile for the high cost.

[CheekyChops]

There is not necessarily nothing in there to steal - they will take copper or lead pipes amongst other things. You could get smackheads using it as a drugs den and trashing/torching the place.

[lespots]

as long as you inform ur insurance company that the property is empty you will be covered for any unlawful entery, believe or not ther is no such law as squatters rights,its a ploy to pass the buck from one benifit department to the other

[chrisluke246]

When you own property that is currently unoccupied, you must ensure that the property type of policy is protecting the location, both the actual home and the contents which are in it. When deciding on the unoccupied house insurance policy to choose, making sure you ask all questions is critical, as far as what is protected, the duration of that protection (most companies will only provide coverage for 30 days, some for 60 days of unoccupancy, depending on the reasons for the home being unoccupied for such a long period of time), what is protected, and so forth, in order for you to select the proper insurer, as well as the highest amounts of coverage, during the time they are willing to insure the property for.