Holiday Home Insurance
Swapping Your Home for the Holidays
The challenging economic conditions in the UK at present mean that many Brits are looking for cunning ways to save money. As is so often the case, luxuries are the first to go – and pricey holidays would fall into this bracket.
One way to save some money is to swap your home – temporarily that is. Many families are starting to discover the possibilities offered by swapping their home with other families, in lieu of an expensive getaway. While it is true that those who live in more glamorous locations will be able to do this more easily, even if you don’t live in the most exciting city, you may be near special facilities such as indoor ski centres, 3D cinemas, unusual museums, beaches or national parks.
While the notion of swapping your home on a temporary basis for a holiday is more popular in the United States than the UK, interest is picking up here too.
Those who own a holiday home could also benefit from this idea – especially since they are likely to be located in a very desirable location. Be sure, however, to check with your holiday home insurance provider before you go ahead with any swap.
Taking Due Care When Leaving Your Holiday Home Empty
While taking out a holiday home insurance policy is something of a must for those who own a second home, some property owners are unaware that a certain degree of due care is required for the policy to be honoured. While the precise terms and conditions of each policy can differ, most – or all – will contain some wording that stipulates the owner must do certain things in order to reduce the likelihood of any damage taking place.
With harsh winter weather in the offing, bearing this in mind is especially important. Below are three areas that can lead to an insurance provider claiming negligence on the part of the owner:
Owners that leave their property unheated and/or their water supply on when temperatures are -15C or lower.
Owners who decide to turn off their heating and leave the water supply on when they vacate their property because they do not have much heating oil left.
Owners who do not take the time to inspect their properties before and during particularly cold temperatures; straight forward precautions can prevent burst pipes and thus prevent damage from occurring to a property.
While this list is certainly not exhaustive, it is a reminder of how important it is to read the terms and conditions of your insurance policy – particularly before you are about to leave your property empty during the winter.
If you need a quote for second home insurance contact click4quote.Com Insurance
Tips for Maintaining Your Thatched Roof
While properties with thatched roofs are by no means common, there are still a surprising number across the UK. If you’re fortunate enough to have recently purchased a property with a thatched roof, it is important that you maintain the roof as well as you can. Naturally, taking out a good holiday home insurance or standard home insurance policy is highly recommended for all properties, but aside from this safety net there are a number of practical things you can do to ensure that your thatch remains in good condition for as long as possible, and is able to cope with poor weather conditions.
Once you move in, try to establish early what condition the thatch is in. Do not make the assumption that just because the roof looks a little dirty or because the straw is slipping that the roof is in poor condition. Equally, do not assume that if the roof looks trim and tidy, that it is in good condition. By ensuring you repair your thatch in a timely manner, you may be able to significantly extend the life of the roof. It is a good idea not to move around on your thatch unnecessarily, and not to let others do so either.
It is important not to let non-thatchers fix netting, flashing or such additions as TV aerials to the roof without the advice of an experienced thatcher. With this in mind, you should always seek advice from a professional thatcher before making any changes to your roof. The cost will be repaid many times over by extending the life of the roof.
Choosing a Holiday Home in Cumbria
If you’re fortunate enough to be in the market for a holiday home, you’ll soon realise that getting the finance to make the purchase is only the first step. Choosing a location and holiday home that suits your needs and lifestyle is equally important – and in some ways also very challenging. One part of the UK that has long been popular among holiday home owners is Cumbria, largely due to its beautiful countryside – much of which can be found in the world famous Lake District National Park.
A holiday home in Cumbria is best suited to those who love the countryside and are less keen on the city; in fact Cumbria has no cities. Instead, the outdoors provides ample opportunity to enjoy walking, hiking, cycling and even more adventurous pastimes such as rock climbing.
Before you can think about buying a home in this region and going about all the practical arrangements – such as taking out a holiday home insurance policy for example – consider if you are ready to make the transition to Cumbria. For those who have spent a large portion of their lives in cities, the change can be dramatic; a quieter, more laid back approach to life should be expected. But along with more peaceful surroundings, you may well find very friendly locals and a sense of community that may be lacking in more built up areas.
Be Prepared Storm and Flood Resources
Preparation is everything, and when it comes to storms and floods this is doubly true. Dealing with flood or wind damage can be a very costly and stressful experience, but there are steps you can take so you are as ready as possible to deal with such conditions. While having the right insurance policy – be it holiday home insurance, unoccupied property insurance or one of the various other types of insurance on the market – is of course very prudent, on a practical level there are a number of other precautions you can take.
There are various agencies in the UK that have been set up especially to keep the public informed about incoming storms and floods. Keeping tabs on the Met Office’s website is a very effective way of keeping up to date with the weather – weather which in the UK can change very quickly indeed. If you’re a Twitter user, you might find it easier to keep updated by following @metoffice.
The Environment Agency website provides information about flood warnings currently in force, together with data on river and sea levels in your part of the country. By signing up to the Flood Warnings Direct service on 0845 988 1188 you can receive warnings by phone, text, email or fax. Once again, you can follow the Environment Agency’s twitter account – @EnvAgency. There are also Environment Agency Twitter accounts for the various regions of the UK.
Preventing Holiday Home Damage Caused by Pets
The British love their pets, and tend to take them everywhere – including away on holiday. It shouldn’t come as a surprise, then, that so many landlords experience damage caused by their tenants’ furry friends’. But what can you do about it?
The easy option is simply to disallow pets from staying in your holiday home. But while this will certainly save your fixtures and fittings from being bitten, scratched and gnawed at, don’t forget that owning pets in the UK is very widespread, and you may be losing out on the very lucrative ‘furry pound’.
If you do let animals stay in your home, be aware that few holiday home insurance policies will provide cover for damage caused by pets. That said, there are a number of other things you can do to limit the effect of pets on your property. Perhaps the most effective is asking pet owners for a deposit – and return it to them only after you have carried out a full and detailed inspection your property.
Your holiday letting agreement should clearly state that any damage caused by pets needs to be paid for in full. By making your tenants as aware as possible of the ramifications of damage caused by their pets, they will be more inclined to keep an eye on their furry companions, which will hopefully reduce the likelihood of an incident.
If you need holiday property insurance contact click4quote insurance for a competitive quote.
HMRC Sets Sights on UK’s Wealthiest Overseas Property Owners
For the vast majority of holiday home owners, looking after and enjoying their property doesn’t get much more complicated than choosing a good overseas holiday home insurance policy and making sure the garden doesn’t get too out of control.
But for a select few wealthier members of British society, owning holiday homes overseas may be about to become a little more challenging. The Government has said it is to clamp down on tax dodging among Britons who own second homes in other countries.
Within the hallowed offices of HM Revenue and Customs a new 200 person unit has been created especially for the task of catching tax evaders in the very upper income brackets of the UK.
Special ‘data mining’ technology will be utilised in order to flag up British citizens with land or property overseas. The tools that make use of this data will highlight those who do not appear to be able to afford a given property – or who appear to be paying too little income or capital gains tax.
The Government has pledged 917 million pounds to the cause of preventing tax evasion among Britain’s richest citizens. As well as overseas property owners, the team plans to focus its attention on UK commodity traders and those UK residents with offshore accounts – in that order.
Holiday home insurance is available from click4quote.com insurance brokers, with online quotes and cover available.