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What insurance should I get for an Airbnb property?

7 replies

QueenoftheIceAge · 03/06/2019 17:07

We have one small house that we have recently started to let through Airbnb full time, although in reality it usually only has bookings at weekends and in holidays, and another rented house that we live in. The Airbnb house has until now just been on a normal household insurance (contents and buildings) but it’s due for renewal and I’m wondering if we should insure it differently now.

Any advice?

OP posts:
purpleleotard · 03/06/2019 17:11

Try Boswells insurance agency as they may be able to help.
Have you got the correct planning permission to operate?
Have you considered the HHSRS requirements?
Do you own out right or does the mortgage company know?
Are you registered with your local council, if required, for operating a HMO?
good luck

QueenoftheIceAge · 03/06/2019 17:27

Interesting...
Will try Boswells. Do you think it would need a different kind of insurance then?
I’m not sure what planning we’d need, there’s no change of use.
It’s not an HMO so that’s not relevant.
Newly renovated so all standards are in excess of what is needed.
Mortgage company - not notified them as it’s not let all the time. I wonder whether I should tell them?

OP posts:
purpleleotard · 05/06/2019 14:41

You will definitely need non standard insurance.
Were the renovations done to HMO standards, not normal domestic, ie have you mains interconnected smoke and heat alarms, CO monitor, fire blanket? Perhaps fire resistant doors?
Yes I think the mortgage holder will need to know even if only let for a few days. Your insurance may be invalid if you don't inform them.
Perhaps I am ill-informed but your family home is a C3 planning category. If you intend to let to any group that is not one family unit, ie two friends, then you will need C4.

onedayiwillmissthis · 05/06/2019 16:57

Normal domestic insurance will be invalid. So, in effect the property is uninsured. Mortgage company need to be informed and asked for permission. They would also not be happy about the invalid buildings insurance.

Course you could just continue to 'wing it'...take the money and runHmm...just be aware that in the event of any problem/damage any insurance company will investigate. And they do love it when they can wriggle out of paying up! Oh, and in the event of any serious injury to any 'renting' person due to any problem with the property? Got the funds to pay legal fees, compensation etc?

origamiwarrior · 06/06/2019 06:23

You'll need "Furnished Holiday Let" Insurance. Shop around, prices differ widely. Some names are Boshers, Schofields and i4me. Unfortunately your current insurance is invalid! The main difference is the amount of Public Liability required - this should be £5 million for a sleeps 4 house.

With regard to planning, do check with your local council as requirements differ, we checked and our council confirmed we did not need any planning, but different councils interpret the planning reqs differently (with more of a hard-line in traditionally touristy areas).

As you aren't resident in the property, you'll have to change from Council Tax to Business rates. The good news is that if this is your only business, it's likely you'll be eligible for up to 100% business rate relief. The bad news is that councils do not collect, or charge to collect rubbish for businesses, so you'll need to pay for licensed rubbish disposal (its illegal for commercial rubbish to enter the domestic rubbish cycle).

Yes to all the things mentioned re. smoke, CO2, fire blankets. Our holiday let insurance also stipulates the number and type of fire extinguishers on each floor, and how many days the property can be left empty without taking the precaution of draining the heating system. Also make sure your fire risk assessment, safety risk assessment, electrical testing, boiler servicing, chimney sweeping etc are all up to date, as these could invalidate insurance in the event of a claim.

QueenoftheIceAge · 06/06/2019 22:34

This is all really useful, thank you. It’s a hard thing to google as there are so many variants that lead you down rabbit holes of irrelevant info. Do these things all still apply if one is living in one house on the property and using Airbnb to let something like an annexe on the same property, does anyone know?

OP posts:
surreygirl1987 · 08/06/2021 17:32

Hello, just wondering if you ever got anywhere with this, as we are considering airbnbing out our house just while we have an overlap of 2 properties for a month or two? Thanks!

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