Landlord insurance is cover designed for property you let to tenants, rather than live in yourself. A standard home policy usually will not cover a let property, so landlords need a policy built for the risk. It typically combines buildings cover, property owners’ liability, and optional protections such as loss of rent, tenant default and contents for anything you provide. The exact mix depends on the property, the tenancy and whether you own one property or a portfolio.
The core point is that letting a property changes the risk: different occupants, periods between tenancies, and a liability exposure to tenants and visitors that a homeowner does not carry. Landlord insurance is built around those differences.
What does landlord insurance cover?
Most landlord policies are built around buildings insurance for the structure, and property owners’ liability for claims from tenants, visitors or the public injured because of the property. Common additions include loss of rent if the property becomes uninhabitable after an insured event, contents cover for furnishings you provide, accidental and malicious damage by tenants, and rent guarantee for tenant default.
Do I legally need landlord insurance?
There is no law that compels landlord insurance itself, but parts of it are effectively unavoidable. Mortgage lenders almost always require buildings insurance as a condition of a buy-to-let loan, and the liability exposure to tenants is large enough that few landlords would sensibly go without. Where you employ anyone at the property, such as a caretaker, employers’ liability is separately compulsory.
Does a normal home insurance policy cover a let property?
Generally no. Standard home insurance is priced and worded for owner-occupied property, and letting the property usually breaches its terms, which can leave a claim unpaid. Once you let a property, you need a landlord or property owners’ policy, and you should tell your insurer if an owner-occupied property becomes a let.
What affects a landlord policy and its price?
The property type and construction, the rebuild cost, the kind of tenancy and tenants, whether the property is a single let or an HMO, and any periods it will be unoccupied all affect cover and price. Getting the rebuild cost right matters in particular, because underinsurance can cut a claim through the average clause.
Getting the cover right
Landlord insurance is a package, and the right combination depends on the property, the let and whether you have one property or several. A broker can build the cover around your actual exposure rather than a one-size policy. To review your property cover, call 01795 841 310 or speak to the team.
Who needs landlord insurance
Anyone who lets a home they own to tenants needs a policy written for letting. That covers more people than the term suggests.
- The accidental landlord. You move in with a partner and let your flat in Bristol rather than sell it. Your home policy was written for you living there, so it needs replacing before the tenant moves in.
- The buy-to-let investor. One or several houses bought with buy-to-let mortgages. The lender will require buildings cover, and a portfolio policy can put every address on one renewal date.
- The HMO landlord. A shared house let room by room to students or young professionals. Insurers rate this differently from a single family let, so it must be declared.
- The leaseholder who lets a flat. If the freeholder insures the building, you may only need contents, liability and loss of rent cover. Our guide to block of flats insurance explains the building side. Short stay lets need holiday let insurance instead.
What landlord insurance typically does not cover
Most declined landlord claims fall into a few gaps. Check the wording for each before you rely on the policy.
- Wear and tear and poor maintenance. A roof that leaks because it was never repaired is a maintenance cost, not an insured event.
- Your tenant’s belongings. Tenants need their own contents insurance. Your contents section only covers the furnishings and appliances you provide.
- Unpaid rent. Loss of rent after a fire or flood is different from rent a tenant stops paying. Default is covered only by rent guarantee insurance.
- Malicious or accidental damage by tenants, unless you have added it. It is often optional rather than standard.
- Long empty periods. Cover is often reduced once a property has been empty beyond the days allowed in the wording. See our guide to unoccupied home insurance.
- Undisclosed changes. Switching from a family let to student sharers, or to short stays, without telling the insurer can leave a claim unpaid.
Your legal duties as a landlord in England
Insurance sits alongside a set of legal duties. The rules below apply in England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland each have their own regimes.
| Duty | What the rule requires |
|---|---|
| Gas safety | An annual gas safety check by a Gas Safe registered engineer. Existing tenants get a copy of the record within 28 days of the check, new tenants before they move in. |
| Electrical safety | An inspection and test of the electrical installation at least every 5 years. Existing tenants get the report within 28 days, new tenants before they move in. Remedial work is due within 28 days, or sooner if the report says so. |
| Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms | A smoke alarm on each storey with a room used as living accommodation, and a carbon monoxide alarm in any such room with a fixed combustion appliance other than a gas cooker. Alarms must work on the day a new tenancy starts. |
| Deposit protection | Protect the deposit in a government approved scheme within 30 days of receiving it. The deposit is capped at five weeks’ rent where annual rent is under £50,000. |
| Right to rent | Check that your tenants have the right to rent. This check applies only in England. |
These duties connect to your insurance. A tenant hurt by a faulty appliance may bring a claim under the property owners’ liability section, and a missed check will be examined. A court also cannot make a possession order on most grounds where the deposit was not protected, which affects any legal expenses or rent guarantee claim.
The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 and your policy
The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 changed private renting in England from 1 May 2026. The parts most relevant to insurance are these.
- Section 21 has gone. No new section 21 notices can be served. Possession now relies on the section 8 grounds, such as rent arrears or selling the property.
- Tenancies are periodic. Most are now assured periodic tenancies with no fixed term, and tenants can leave on two months’ notice.
- Insurance terms on children and benefits. A term in an insurance contract that would require you to refuse tenants with children, or tenants who claim benefits, has no effect. This applies to contracts entered into or renewed from 1 May 2026.
- Rent in advance is capped at one month, and can only be requested once the tenancy agreement is signed.
- More to come. A landlord database and a landlord ombudsman follow in later phases, with ombudsman membership expected to become mandatory in 2028.
If your policy was last reviewed before May 2026, check that its rent guarantee and legal expenses sections refer to the current possession process.
Looking for landlord insurance?
Tell us what your business does and we will look for cover that fits. Call 01795 841 310 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm) or send us your details and we will come back to you.
How a landlord insurance claim works
- Make the property safe. Stop the water, board the window or call the emergency line on your policy.
- Tell the insurer or broker promptly. Most policies require notice as soon as reasonably possible.
- Gather evidence. Photographs, the tenancy agreement, the inventory, inspection notes and any relevant safety certificates.
- Allow inspection. For larger claims a loss adjuster may visit. Arrange access with the tenant on proper notice.
- Agree repairs and any loss of rent. If the property cannot be lived in, loss of rent cover usually pays up to the limit and period in the schedule.
- Settlement. The excess is deducted, and underinsurance can reduce the payment proportionately.
A worked example
This example is hypothetical and shows how the sections fit together.
A landlord lets a terraced house to a family. In January a loft pipe bursts while the tenants are away. Water comes through two ceilings and the house cannot be lived in for six weeks.
- The buildings section pays for the ceilings and plaster, less the escape of water excess.
- The contents section pays for the landlord’s carpets and white goods.
- The loss of rent section pays the lost rent while the house is uninhabitable, up to the policy limit.
- The tenants’ own furniture and clothes fall to their own contents policy.
Frequently asked questions
Is landlord insurance tax deductible?
Usually, yes. HMRC guidance lists insurance such as landlords’ buildings, contents and public liability policies as an allowable expense against rental income, provided it is wholly and exclusively for the letting.
Does landlord insurance cover damage caused by tenants?
Only if accidental or malicious damage by tenants is included. It is often an optional extra, and wear and tear is not covered either way.
Can I let to tenants on benefits and still be insured?
Yes. In England, a term in an insurance contract entered into or renewed from 1 May 2026 that would require you to refuse tenants who claim benefits has no effect.
Do I need landlord insurance if I let to a family member?
You need to tell your insurer, whether or not rent is paid. Whether your home policy can continue or a landlord policy is needed depends on the insurer.
Does landlord insurance cover my tenant’s belongings?
No. It covers the building and the contents you supply. Tenants should arrange their own contents insurance.