Am I obliged to take out contents insurance as a tenant?

jgfaulkner

My letting agent, JP&Brimelow, have told me that I need to take out contents insurance, on the landlord's instructions, before I can move into my new property.

Am I in any position to refuse getting contents insurance? It's looking like it'll cost me over £200. Surely, the landlord should have insurance for their possessions? I thought deposits were for things like accidental damage.

Hope someone can help.

Jamie

katejo

jgfaulkner wrote: »

My letting agent, JP&Brimelow, have told me that I need to take out contents insurance, on the landlord's instructions, before I can move into my new property.

Am I in any position to refuse getting contents insurance? It's looking like it'll cost me over £200. Surely, the landlord should have insurance for their possessions? I thought deposits were for things like accidental damage.

Hope someone can help.

Jamie

It is to cover your own possessions in case of fire, flood, burglary etc. Last week i saw a query on here in which a tenant moved into his new flat and used the tumble dryer. He left it running and went out. The dryer caught fire and there was major damage to the flat. He asked whether the landlord was responsible for the damage to his own property in the bedroom. Most of the responses said No. He should have arranged contents insurance.

Do you want to lose clothes, shoes, computer etc.?

Fire_Fox

Welcome! You cannot insure someone else's possessions only your own.

sailerboy

Whether you choose to insure your own belongings is up to you.

Whether the landlord chooses to insure his belongings is up to him.

However, if the landlord or his agent is insisting you take out contents insurance before they will grant you a tenancy, your choices are to refuse and lose the property, or agree.

Of course, insurance policies can be cancelled within 14 days, so you could take out a policy, show it to the agent, get the tenancy signed, then cancel. Some insurers may charge an admin fee for this, but not all, so check.

torbrex

Where did the figure of £200 come from?
Even a basic quote should only be about £50 or less

McKneff

£200, youre 'aving a larf.

Shop around, it's much cheaper than that.

Virtually £1 a week for peace of mind, and it gets you your tenancy.

Cheap at twice the price.

dimbo61

renting in manchester?
Now its a good idea to get contents insurance for your belongings and your landlord should have buildings and contents for his property and any contents he provides IE fridge/frezer, beds, sofas etc
Huge student area in manchester and most students want the property furnished.
Are the letting agents trying to make extra money by trying to get you to take out expensive insurance with a company they get commission from? or do they want you to take out contents insurance because you are moving into an area with high burgulary rates !!!!

Owain_Moneysaver

The letting agents are authorised to carry out insurance business by the FSA are they? And on a whole of market basis?

Or are they offering an insurance policy on which they'll get a nice kick-back?

jamie11

A landlords insurance policy will normally cover the building and up to about £5000 of the landlords property but it will not cover any of your property, it is a very sensible thing to have. £200 is far too expensive though, just shop around as already suggested.

Please edit out the name of the agent in your first post.

FireWyrm

Dont tell me...the agent has just such an insurance policy all typed up and waiting huh?

You are under no obligation to take 'their' insurance, but some sort of contents insurance is only prudent. Get onto someone reasonably well known and get a quote...show that quote to your letting agent...job done. They still dont have any right to ask for one, it's none of their business, but just assuming they refuse to complete on the tenancy because you dont have one, just take it out for now.

princeofpounds

Of course, insurance policies can be cancelled within 14 days, so you could take out a policy, show it to the agent, get the tenancy signed, then cancel. Some insurers may charge an admin fee for this, but not all, so check

You are under no obligation to take 'their' insurance, but some sort of contents insurance is only prudent. Get onto someone reasonably well known and get a quote...show that quote to your letting agent...job done.

These two pieces of advice are the way to deal with scams like this.