Insuring your rental property

Landlord's protection insurance

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When renting out your property, you want to make sure it’s well protected. While it would be nice to assume that your tenants will treat your property as carefully as you would, you can never be certain that everything will go 100% according to plan.

By covering yourself with landlord's protection insurance, you can save yourself a great deal of time, money and stress in the long run.

But I already have homeowner's insurance?

There is a key difference between the usual homeowner's insurance and landlord’s insurance. Put simply, while homeowner's insurance only covers owner-occupied homes, landlord's insurance covers properties that are rented out.

While some home insurance plans include a landlord’s extension for accidental damage and chattels this doesn’t cover you for a variety of other things that could go wrong.

Top things to look for when shopping around for a landlords protection insurance policy

Property damage insurance

This is coverage in the event that your furnishings or fixtures suffer from a fire, natural disaster, chemical contamination, electric malfunction, vandalism or irresponsible tenants.

Liability protection

If a tenant or a visitor is injured on the property due to a property maintenance issue (think build-up of moss and mould on walkways, a staircase or handrail giving way, or a collapsed roof) this protects you against the medical or legal costs that could ensue.

Loss of rental income

This cover provides temporary rental reimbursement in the event something causes your property to be totally uninhabitable.

Guaranteed income insurance

As a landlord, you lose money if your tenant comes up short on the rent one month, or worse, doesn’t pay at all. If you’re looking for some extra protection against a scenario like this, search for a policy that includes guaranteed income insurance.

Loss of rent caused by theft or malicious damage by tenants

While most tenants are trustworthy good people, there are some that can make renting out your property a nightmare.

Many homeowners' policies exclude claims for malicious damage or theft by those living in or legally on the property. This sort of claim can run into the thousands.

Other useful things to keep an eye out for are cover for loss of rent following the eviction of a tenant for non-payment of rent, and loss of rent following a tenant leaving without giving the correct notice period - otherwise known as abandoning the property!

How much will landlord's insurance cost me?

Landlord's insurance tends to be a little pricier than homeowner's insurance, simply because rental properties are more prone to damage and incident.

However, when shopping around for policies, be sure to ask your current insurance provider about bundle options - these can often come at a discount price.