If you are a new Landlord and have just entered the buy-to-let market or you are considering buying a second home you need to consider the best second home insurance.

Unfortunately in many instances your standard home insurance policy will not cover you, because when you start earning income from your property it becomes invalid. Also second home insurance is affected on whether the property is your permanent residence, a holiday home or indeed a stranger is living in the property.

If you are becoming a landlord there are policies available give you the option to purchase cover against events only a landlord might face, such as taking a tenant to court for refusal to pay the rent.

If you’ve owned your own property before, you’ll know buildings insurance covers you for the actual structure of the building you own.

Landlords building insurance is no different and while different policies provide varying levels of cover in this area most policies will provide you with protection for ‘specified perils’ including natural disasters such as earthquakes, lightening and flooding but also theft or malicious damage.

Contents insurance is, again, something you will be familiar with if you’ve ever rented or owned a home.

The Number of second Homes in the UK

First of all you need to clarify to your insurance company what this second homes is used for. Are the homes for holiday or business use?

London has more second homes than anywhere else in the country, with more than 23,000 in just four north London boroughs. It is likely that most belong to people who work in London, but live somewhere else.

The capital is big enough and crowded enough to absorb these homes without a visible impact on city life; however, we do see changes in the city’s house prices.

The majority of the London second homes are bound to be small bolt-holes, for city workers who spend the week in London at a serviced office or relevant commercial property, and then go home to their family on the weekends. Migrant labour, as it were.

One of the many benefits of renting a home over actually owning one is that there are a great deal less expenses and a lot less responsibilities. Although this is true is several aspects, there are some responsibilities of which you must be aware, such as renter’s insurance.

Many people misunderstand the facts when it comes to liability and renters insurance . Renters insurance is designed to keep both landlords and renters aware of the possibilities of liability when it comes to potential accidents. It helps the purchaser of the insurance sleep at night knowing that their apartment or flat is safe for both themselves and for their visitors. Bizarrely, renters insurance even covers you for claims submitted by thieves and intruders and anyone else who may have been in or near your home uninvited. That’s because the law sometimes seems to think that the homeowner or renter also has responsibilities when it comes to the renters, visitors, and even trespassers. Basically there are two types of renters liability insurance. One is for personal liability, the other is for medical liability. Personal liability is meant for cases where someone gets hurt and they could potentially sue; whereas medical liability is held in case someone is injured on your premises and needs medical attention where the renter could be deemed responsible.

There is also umbrella coverage, which is simply home and auto insurance rolled into one policy. There will be limits on the type and amount that you can obtain, but umbrella insurance coverage is designed to cover for much larger amounts that traditional coverage. This will cover you against any large claims for damages, should someone break in and injure themselves or should you have someone injure themselves while in your apartment. If you go on holiday and you get someone to watch the place and feed the cat – should they sue you because their cat allergies flared up, then you will be covered by renters insurance. In addition, if you have a number of valuables in your rented apartment and want to go away on holiday safe in the knowledge that you will be covered if anything happens while you are gone then you need to get some rental insurance. You will no doubt be buying holiday insurance and car insurance for your hire car, so don’t scrimp on insurance for the place you are leaving behind!

Umbrella coverage is much less expensive that you may think. One reason for this is because the deductible is set quite high. Once you have paid your deductible, your insurance coverage will then cover the rest of the lawsuit. Umbrella coverage can cover much more than regular renter’s insurance and should seriously be considered. You can find independent insurance brokers who specialize in bespoke financial and insurance packages by searching for companies that sell everything from landlord insurance to landlord mortgages to rental insurance.