Finding affordable insurance for your let property that has had historic subsidence issues can be quite an ordeal – the tending process can be lengthy if you do not approach the right markets initially but even more so if you do not know the who, what and where the “right” markets are.
Many (if not all!) of the insurers available direct to the public will not even consider a property that has previous subsidence history, by which I mean will not even offer a quotation; so it’s best to mention the subsidence issues right at the start of the quotation process, or quite simply ask “can you insure my let property that has suffered from subsidence in the past” – if you hit jacket pot and the insurer answers “yes” you’ll need to enquire further, as in most cases you’ll find out that when you receive the quotation for your property they will have excluded subsidence cover!
Unless you contact an insurance broker equipped to deal with insurance for Let properties (or any property for that matter) that has suffered from subsidence (such as Goldcrest!) the whole insurance process can leave you feeling trapped, and bound to the same insurer until the end of your ownership with the property – to the extent that complacency kicks in and rather than shop around you keep renewing paying an extra 10 to 20% each year in hope that one day the premium might drop a £1 or so!
Luckily you’ve found the right broker to assist you with reducing those annual premiums for subsidence plagued let properties!
In most cases obtaining a quote for a property that has had subsidence problems over 25 years is relatively easy; we’ll need the extend of the troubles caused, method of repair/eradication and in some cases a surveyors report – if we have all of this information, the turnaround time for quotations are reasonably quick and very competitive.
Where properties have recent subsidence issues the details needed are more extensive; we’ll need majority of the above but also report of the works, a copy of a structural engineers report, and also a certificate of structural adequacy. All of which should have been provided post works by your insurer. When we have all of this together, again the turnaround time for a quotation is usually within a day or so and with the relationships we have with insurers, premiums will usually better what you’re currently paying elsewhere!
It is worth noting that if the property has had subsidence problems within the last 18 months, though we can still cover you, the chances are that you will not receive cover for subsidence at all – new insurers will generally want to see the property has had a good year to 2 years post subsidence works/underpinning without additional movement before providing subsidence cover.
So when your let property insurance is due for renewal, no matter the tenant type or property give our team a call, we’ll get your Let property that has suffered from subsidence covered and also reduce your annual premiums.
