tenants liability insurance?

qwertyjjj

As a tenant, is there any requirement for tenant's liability insurance in the UK?
For example, if I leave a chip pan on one night and burn down the house whilst I am out at the pub, can I get sued for that or is it all covered under the landlord's building insurance?

qwertyjjj

anyone? anyone?

huckster

If you posted under Insurance, you may have had many replies.

Tenants liability cover can be provided as part of a Contents Insurance. So if you take out this type of cover, you will have some cover, if you are held liable.

The type of cover is not to be confused with anything your landlord needs to cover. They own the building, so will have to have Buildings Insurance to cover the building for all the normal perils e.g fire risks. The landlord may also have Contents e.g white goods in the house and again they should take out appropriate cover for these.

BitterAndTwisted

Is there such a thing as tenants' liability insurance? It's my understanding that it is only possible to insure one's own possessions or property, not someone else's.

Ergo: exercise extreme care when or if using chip-pans. Most especially when leaving to go to the pub

huckster

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Is there such a thing as tenants' liability insurance? It's my understanding that it is only possible to insure one's own possessions or property, not someone else's.

Ergo: exercise extreme care when or if using chip-pans. Most especially when leaving to go to the pub

Yes there is. Read your own generic Contents Insurance policy wording to see what it covers.

Just as an example. See page 25 of this linked policy wording.

Under some tenancy agreements tenants can be made legally responsible for certain accidental damage type events. If this is the case, then the tenant concerned should see whether the Contents Insurers provide this and if so, what they cover.

qwertyjjj

huckster wrote: »

Under some tenancy agreements tenants can be made legally responsible for certain accidental damage type events. If this is the case, then the tenant concerned should see whether the Contents Insurers provide this and if so, what they cover.

Some? I know most ASTs account for accidental damamge to furniture and fittings but not sure about neglibly burning the house down or having a plant pot on a ledge fall on the postman's head, etc.
"in the event of destruction of the property or of damage to it which shall make the same or substantial portion of the same inhabitable, the Tenant shall be relieved from paying rent by an amount proportional to the extent to which the Tenant's ability to live in the Property is thereby prevented, save the destruction of the or damage has been caused by any act or default by the Tenant or where the landlord's insurance cover has been adversely affected by any act or omission on the part of the Tenant."
I'm presuming that means the landlord's insurance probably has a clause to sue tenant if it's their fault. The insurance co. certainly won't want to pay.


I don't think Sainsbury's contents cover this sort of thing.

Normally I wouldn't worry about this sort of stuff but as it seems this country is becoming more like the US, just wondering if it's an issue or not...