Cover for a second home or holiday let, written around a property that is used in bursts, stands empty in between, and may take paying guests through the season.
A holiday property has a rhythm that standard home insurance does not expect. Busy weeks, empty weeks, different people through the door, and a building often exposed to coast or countryside weather.
Full reinstatement cover for the structure, outbuildings, boundaries and permanent fixtures, with accidental damage available as an option. Standard perils include fire, theft, storm, flood and subsidence.
e.g. A coastal cottage losing roof tiles and taking water damage in a winter storm.
The furniture, appliances, kitchenware, soft furnishings and equipment that make the property usable. Accidental damage cover is the sensible addition where guests are staying.
e.g. A guest cracking the hob and marking the dining table during a changeover week.
Your liability if a guest or visitor is injured, or their property is damaged, because of the building or something in it. Employers’ liability is available where you employ cleaners or a changeover team.
e.g. A guest injured on a steep external step at a converted barn.
Cover written for a property that sits unused between bookings and out of season, rather than one that penalises you the moment it is empty for a few weeks.
e.g. A lakeside lodge closed from November to March with heating left on low.
However you use the property, and whether or not it earns its keep, the policy is written around holiday use.
Second homes
A property kept for your own use through the year.
Holiday lets
Let to paying guests, short-term and seasonal.
Cottages and converted barns
Traditional rural and coastal holiday property.
Apartments and flats
Purpose-built and converted, up to four storeys.
Limited companies and LLPs
Property held through a company or partnership.
SIPPs and trusts
Holiday property held in a pension or trust.
Small holiday portfolios
Up to 100 properties on one application, in multiple locations.
Mixed personal and let use
Property you use yourself and also let out through the season.
Properties need to be in good repair, weatherproof and structurally sound, built principally of brick, stone or concrete and no more than four storeys without prior agreement, with a standard heating system. Properties at high flood risk, or close to cliffs or quarries, and anything undergoing structural work to load-bearing elements, need to be referred to a broker rather than quoted online. Fire safety conditions apply to guest lets, including keeping cooking to the designated kitchen areas.
One application covers a single cottage or a collection of properties. Buy it online, or call if the property is unusual, coastal, listed or heavily let.
The questions we hear most often from holiday property owners.
A holiday home is a second property you use yourself. A holiday let is one you also rent out to paying guests. Insurers treat them differently because letting brings other people, higher turnover and public liability into the picture. This policy is built to handle both, including properties that switch between the two through the year.
Cannot see your question? Speak to our team on 01782 739099.
Why use a broker
FCA regulated
Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
Experienced team
Decades of combined commercial broking experience behind the firm.
Named broker
A direct line to the same person at quote, renewal and claim.
Independent
No tie-ins. We use the market that fits the property.
● Cover that often sits alongside this
Ready when you are
Buildings, contents, guests and empty weeks, handled on one policy. Buy online now, or talk it through with a broker.
