Specialised Home Insurance
In addition to the two main types of home insurance, many insurers offer specialised policies. Each of these is designed to meet the needs of a different group of customers. Types of specialised home insurance include: second home / holiday home insurance, static caravan insurance, touring caravan insurance, flat / apartment insurance, listed building insurance, commercial property insurance, thatched roof / cottage insurance, bed and breakfast home insurance, subsidence insurance, student possession insurance, empty property insurance, and landlord (buy-to-let) insurance.
Each of these insurances are made up of the two basic types of cover: buildings and contents insurance. However, the exact protection offered, any additional benefits and the level of cover provided are all tailor-made to suit the target customer's needs. For example, thatched roof / cottage insurance will cover the extra cost of replacing your thatched roof if it is damaged or destroyed; many standard home insurance policies will not cover this eventuality, because specialist tradesmen are required to restore this type of roof.
Similarly, a standard home insurance policy does not usually cover damage caused by paying guests. This means that if you run a bed and breakfast you require extra cover, because you will frequently welcome paying guests into your property and increase the likelihood of having to make such a claim. Equally, if your house has suffered damage as a result of subsidence in the past, some insurers will refuse to offer you adequate cover. Specialised subsidence insurance however is available from a number of insurers and provides the correct level of cover.
It is not always advantageous to take out specialised home insurance, even if you fit the target consumer profile. Although there may be additional benefits, these can be counteracted by policy disadvantages. For example, if you take out specialised landlord insurance which provides additional cover for damage caused by a tenant, the premium that you pay will usually be much larger than that of a standard policy.
Nevertheless, in some cases you may find that specialised insurance is your only option, if standard policies fail to provide you with adequate cover. For example, if your property is a listed building, you are usually required to purchase specialised listed building insurance, because insurers will refuse to cover the additional cost of repairs to a protected property on a normal policy. Before you make a final decision, ensure that you research all the options available to you; do not assume that a policy which claims to offer you a good deal will necessarily suit your needs.
