Posted:17-June-2008
Belvoir franchise urges tenants and landlords to check insurance policies
As the residential lettings market continues to grow Belvoir, the UK’s leading lettings specialist, is urging tenants and landlords to check their insurance policies to ensure they are adequately covered.
Failure to purchase adequate insurance can result in insurance companies not paying out in full – and in certain cases even refusing to pay out at all – in the event of a claim.
Under-insurance is a common problem in the UK, with many people simply having no idea of the level of insurance cover they require. The British Insurance Brokers Association issues regular warnings about under-insurance, yet few consumers appear to be heeding their advice and reading their insurance policies thoroughly and calculating the value of their contents correctly.
“Most UK consumers have a good idea of property market values but find it difficult to put an accurate figure on the replacement value of their possessions or the reinstatement value of their buildings,” says Mike Goddard, Chief Executive of Belvoir Lettings, which operates a national network of offices including the one on Lincoln Road, Peterborough.
“We urge all of our tenants to take the time to carry out a thorough contents value audit before buying insurance. This is actually fairly straightforward and simply involves going around your home from room to room and totting up the replacement value of every item.”
The increasingly high number of ‘must-have’ hi tech gadgets such as PCs, mobile phones and games consoles can push up the overall cost of home contents considerably. Individual high value items such as these may also need to be flagged up to an insurance company. Belvoir says that many people fail to estimate just how much it would cost them to replace items such as these as well as items such as clothing, footwear, CDs and DVDs, hobby equipment and even curtains and carpets.
As well as offering insurance advice to tenants, Belvoir also works with landlords to ensure that they have the right level of insurance cover for their properties. Many buildings insurance policies are inadequate for buy-to-let properties and will not include things such as accidental damage by tenants or cover for furnishings.
Belvoir works with insurance broker Clarke Roxburgh to provide tailor-made insurance policies for landlords with options such as cover for furniture included in their buildings insurance policy for little additional cost.
“Insurance should be taken seriously by both tenants and landlords,” says Mike. “Many people think that if they have some kind of cover they are okay but having the right value and type of insurance cover is essential.
“All clients of Belvoir can receive free insurance advice from their local office,” he continues. “And experience shows us that it really is worth taking the time to research your insurance needs as, in the event of a claim, many people are shocked to discover that they are in fact under-insured.”
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