I'm mad! Lloyds won't insure me if i have a lodger! Advice please

melissa'smoney

hi all,

I've finally found a lodger after some very helpful advice from MSE'ers' (thank you) and he moves in on Saturday. I've done all the thnigs i'm supposed to, let Council tax know, got a contract, rent book etc and today i phoned the insurance company as app your meant to declare it?
I'm with Lloyds TSB who stated that my current policy wouldn't cover a lodger so i'd have to change my policy...thinking a slight increase in payments...nope...they will only give me standard cover and NO accidental damage cover! :mad: Is this fair?! It's my home...

What annoys me is that ive been honest and been penalised for it, they would never have known i had a lodger if i hadn't declared it...

So they've cancelled my policy (their doing not my request) as they have it on tape i'm getting a lodger and i have 7 days to find a new policy...

What have other people done with lodgers/houseshares? Did you declare it? Is there a good company for homeowners with lodgers??

thanks x

jonesMUFCforever

It's your home but by taking in a lodger you are increasing the risk that someone could take or break some of your possessions.

Have you phoned a broker to see what is available?

FlameCloud

melissa'smoney wrote: »

I'm with Lloyds TSB who stated that my current policy wouldn't cover a lodger so i'd have to change my policy...thinking a slight increase in payments...nope...they will only give me standard cover and NO accidental damage cover! :mad: Is this fair?! It's my home...

What annoys me is that ive been honest and been penalised for it, they would never have known i had a lodger if i hadn't declared it...

This is actually quite common. I know the company I work for will either cancel the policy or, if they are happy with the way that it has been run, allow it continue but with no AD cover.

With regards to the second point. Firstly, if you dont tell the insurer it is Fraud. Secondly, it is very easy to detect, despite what you may think. I cannot say for certain (not working for Lloyds TSB!) but I would be shocked if they didnt have access to their banking systems which would let them see accounts at addresses. Even if the lodger didnt have any bank accounts, you could still find either experian searchs for credit or the voters role would give the information very easily. You'd then have to explain why this wasnt disclosed, and believe me, it looks far better to have told the insurer before a claim happens.

melissa'smoney

FlameCloud wrote: »

This is actually quite common. I know the company I work for will either cancel the policy or, if they are happy with the way that it has been run, allow it continue but with no AD cover.

With regards to the second point. Firstly, if you dont tell the insurer it is Fraud. Secondly, it is very easy to detect, despite what you may think. I cannot say for certain (not working for Lloyds TSB!) but I would be shocked if they didnt have access to their banking systems which would let them see accounts at addresses. Even if the lodger didnt have any bank accounts, you could still find either experian searchs for credit or the voters role would give the information very easily. You'd then have to explain why this wasnt disclosed, and believe me, it looks far better to have told the insurer before a claim happens.

thanks for this, will i be ok continuing it without AD then? or should i look around for a policy that allows me to have AD?

x

lisyloo

This really is your choice.

There are two types of AD - one for building and one for contents.

Buildings are for example if you damage a pipe, radiator, drop something on an enamal sink or cooker hob etc.
Contents are (for example) if you spill paint on the carpet, drop a TV, smash some glass etc.

Personally I've gone for contents and not buildings but it's a matter of person choice.
How many accidents of this nature have you ever had?
Do you have kids? pets? etc.
Do you have expensive things?

It's quite ok to take a risk if you want to but of course you won't get anything if you have an accident.

melissa'smoney

lisyloo wrote: »

This really is your choice.
There are two types of AD - one for building and one for contents.

Buildings are for example if you damage a pipe, radiator, drop something on an enamal sink or cooker hob etc.
Contents are (for example) if you spill paint on the carpet, drop a TV, smash some glass etc.

Personally I've gone for contents and not buildings but it's a matter of person choice.
How many accidents of this nature have you ever had?
Do you have kids? pets? etc.
Do you have expensive things?

It's quite ok to take a risk if you want to but of course you won't get anything if you have an accident.

they won't give me AD on either C or B which i currently have on both so i guess i'll just have to take the risk and cross everything!! x

*MF*

Hi ... your post was a major memory jerker - in that i remembered something about Virgin specifically about lodgers, googled it, and hey, my memory is not as bad as I thought.:rolleyes:

This is an extract from their FAQ page:

But if you and your family live in the house and you've no more than 2 lodgers, you can get a quote by calling us

Here:

http://uk.virginmoney.com/home-insurance/faq.html

I never went ahead with them, so can't recommend in any way, ok, but (again from memory) they didn't then want to restrict AD.

Worth checking out, maybe?

Oscar_The_Grouch

Hi there

My 2p, although you seem to have had good advice from everyone else: move insurers.

LTSB runs a panel of insurers, but it has very strict guidelines. They use Sterling Insurance to provide cover for their high net worth customers, but also for non-standard risks. Sterling also provide 90% of their PPI covers too.

The problem you have is that when you took on a lodger, you became "non standard" to LTSB in that you would not fit within their general criteria. As a result, your policy would transfer to Sterling and they are the ones that will not offer you the AD cover; not LTSB.

I think that with a lodger in the house, you need AD cover and I would always opt to include AD to Buildings too. One of the most common AD claims on buildings is for ingress of rain through a faulty roof; it's not "Storm" as the roof was not damaged by high winds, but the water coming through your ceiling was sudden and unintended, so is included in AD cover. The second most common AD claim is to a bath or toilet. These are part of the buildings.

Good lock in your search.

raskazz

Oscar_The_Grouch wrote: »

Hi there

My 2p, although you seem to have had good advice from everyone else: move insurers.

LTSB runs a panel of insurers, but it has very strict guidelines. They use Sterling Insurance to provide cover for their high net worth customers, but also for non-standard risks. Sterling also provide 90% of their PPI covers too.

The problem you have is that when you took on a lodger, you became "non standard" to LTSB in that you would not fit within their general criteria. As a result, your policy would transfer to Sterling and they are the ones that will not offer you the AD cover; not LTSB.

I think that with a lodger in the house, you need AD cover and I would always opt to include AD to Buildings too. One of the most common AD claims on buildings is for ingress of rain through a faulty roof; it's not "Storm" as the roof was not damaged by high winds, but the water coming through your ceiling was sudden and unintended, so is included in AD cover. The second most common AD claim is to a bath or toilet. These are part of the buildings.

Good lock in your search.

I always thought that accidental damage to fixed glass and sanitary fittings was normally included in 'standard' (i.e. without the general accidental damage extension) buildings insurance?

melissa'smoney

*MF* wrote: »

Hi ... your post was a major memory jerker - in that i remembered something about Virgin specifically about lodgers, googled it, and hey, my memory is not as bad as I thought.:rolleyes:

This is an extract from their FAQ page:

But if you and your family live in the house and you've no more than 2 lodgers, you can get a quote by calling us

Here:

http://uk.virginmoney.com/home-insurance/faq.html

I never went ahead with them, so can't recommend in any way, ok, but (again from memory) they didn't then want to restrict AD.

Worth checking out, maybe?

thanks for this but as im finding with the majority of companies they will only offer me standard insurance and NO AD :mad:

Does anyone with a lodger know a company that does insure and include AD on their cover??

Oscar_The_Grouch

raskazz wrote: »

I always thought that accidental damage to fixed glass and sanitary fittings was normally included in 'standard' (i.e. without the general accidental damage extension) buildings insurance?

Standard cover would include AD to these items, but if AD has been excluded, they are "out the window" too.