Home to be empty for weeks/ months- turn water off?

[TheGander]

My brother was admitted to hospital in September and is now in a rehabilitation unit. His house is empty. Should I turn the water off at the stopcock, he may not come out before spring 2023? Thanks for any advice. His house is not in the same town as me but I’ll be going over there next month.

Thanks for the tips guys, there must be insurance available as houses do get left empty as the posts above show. I’ll try finding something and if I can’t I’ll go to a broker.

I went with Towergate Insurance and found them very helpful on the phone for what we needed.

@Princessglittery I just noticed your link- very useful I will certainly make sure his house is registered as I heard that item on You and Yours re empty homes being stolen and registered to fraudsters with the land registry.

In addition, call council about stopping his council tax for while he isn’t in the home and when he returns he may be eligible for the severely mentally incapacitated discount off his council tax.

Thanks @Onnabugeisha that is a good point. Not sure if he’s getting the incapacitated discount so I’ll try and check that, if they agree to talk to me. I don’t have power of attorney.

I work in an assisted living complex . We have to regularly run the water in empty apartments to reduce the risk of legionnaires disease