Can I insure a property I don't own yet?

sweven

We're in the process of buying a flat to let out as an investment. It's got a little complicated as the previous owner died intestate, and the property is being sold by agents of the Crown. This is in Scotland by the way.

My solicitor has pointed out that one of the agents is that we are responsible for the flat from the point that missives are concluded, which might be a fortnight before the actual purchase date when we get the keys.

Is it straightforward to get insurance for a property which we don't own yet?

googler

sweven wrote: »

My solicitor has pointed out that one of the agents is that we are responsible .....

This bit doesn't make grammatical sense - what are we saying here?

warez22

You can only insure a property that you have a 'financial interest' in. This is viewed differently by different Insurance Companies. Some insist that you have to be the legal owner of the property, some are happy once contracts have been exchanged, as at that point you are liable.

So I would advise you to try a few Insurance Companies, outline the situation to them, and see how they few it.

Hope that helps

Kind regards

googler

If your solicitor hasn't concluded missives yet, is he basically saying that the other party wishes to shift this responsibility onto you as part of the terms of contract, and effectively asking you if this OK?

If so, then you should instruct your solicitor to refuse, and insist that the current 'owners' if we can term them as such, discharge their responsibility for the property on the day you take ownership, i.e. the entry date.

sweven

sweven wrote: »

one of the agents conditions is that we are responsible for the flat...

Sorry for the typo.

Thanks for the advice - so I'll try a couple of insurance companies on Monday as I don't want this to drag on too long, but also get my solicitor to contact the agent's solicitor to have the condition changed/removed.

cheers

Sweven

googler

I'd get the solicitor to remove this condition before phoning round, and save your phone bill.

More to the point - why SHOULD you insure it, merely because the current owners/guardians want to shrug off their responsibilities earlier than usual? They own it up until the entry date, why should you insure it whilst they own it?

DVardysShadow

googler wrote: »

I'd get the solicitor to remove this condition before phoning round, and save your phone bill.

More to the point - why SHOULD you insure it, merely because the current owners/guardians want to shrug off their responsibilities earlier than usual? They own it up until the entry date, why should you insure it whilst they own it?

You insure it because if you don't, you have potentially contracted to buy a burnt out wreck at unburnt prices and you cannot be sure that it is insured by the seller.

In my experience I have always insured from contract date and most recently, the lender insisted.

agrinnall

My mum has just moved house (in England, I live in Scotland and have never had to do this when I've moved house) and she had to insure the new property once contracts were exchanged. She contacted her current insurer (Tesco) who were happy to arrange the insurance at no cost.

tux900

DVardysShadow wrote: »

In my experience I have always insured from contract date and most recently, the lender insisted.

Absolutely. This is entirely normal practice and should not be an issue.

Mathew