Home Insurance: Contents vs Building Insurance

Tom_mac

Hi All,

I have recently purchased a 1st floor flat in London (leasehold). There are 3 flats in the converted house. I'm looking to take out home insurance. The freeholder has a buildings insurance policy for the whole house.

What I need to know is what kind of insurance policy I need to take out. My understanding is that buildings insurance taken out by the freeholder will cover the building as a whole including the roof and exterior of the property. Would I then need to take out joint building and contents insurance to insure my flat within the house?

For example would any damage to my kitchen or bathroom be covered by the freeholder's building insurance?

I have requested a copy of the building insurance to have a proper look at the cover but the freeholder is quite 'hands off' and therefore takes quite a while by way of response.

Thanks in advance!

Regards,
Tom

G_M

No. You just need insurance for your possessions - contents.


the freeholder insures the building.

westernpromise

Broadly the freeholder insures what's the freeholder's - walls, roof, windows etc - and you insure what's left.

phill99

Sorry there is an awful lot of mis-information here. I deal with 'block-policies' a lot by way of maintenance contracts and insurance work. The buildings policy held by the freeholder will cover the entire building including your walls, doors, kitchen and nbathroom. It will cover all major perils including flood, fire etc.


You do not need another buildings policy.


What you will need is a policy for your contents. Rule of thumb is that if you could turn your flat upside down, anything that drops out is covered by the contents and things that don't move are covered by the buildings policy. The exception to this is carpets which are classed as contents. Wooden flooring and laminate flooring comes under the buildings aspect.

eddddy

Tom_mac wrote: »

I have requested a copy of the building insurance to have a proper look at the cover but the freeholder is quite 'hands off' and therefore takes quite a while by way of response.

If you've made a formal request, the freeholder has 21 days to comply, otherwise they could be in trouble...

Where a landlord fails without reasonable excuse to comply with either a request for insurance details or to inspect or have copies of the relevant policy or associated documents, they commit a summary offence and are liable for a fine of up to £2,500 (level 4 on the standard scale) on conviction.

See: https://www.lease-advice.org/advice-guide/service-charges-other-issues/