Hounded by reference agency regarding tenant insurance.

bflare

A reference company obtained 2 references for an estate agent with a view to a property that I am moving into next month. I am getting 2 emails a day from this reference company basically saying that they are the preferred insurance partner of the estate agent & the estate have asked them to contact me regarding tenant insurance which is from £7.25 a month to £18.36.
Is this something I legally need to have? I have never had insurance before & have never being hounded in this way.

[Deleted User]

Read your tenancy agreement if not in there you don't need it & send them to spam bin

bflare

_shel wrote: »

Read your tenancy agreement if not in there you don't need it & send them to spam bin

I am due to move in next month therefore I have not had sight of the agreement as of yet. I have not paid the deposit or fist months rent & only the reference fee so far.

Carrot007

bflare wrote: »

I am due to move in next month therefore I have not had sight of the agreement as of yet. I have not paid the deposit or fist months rent & only the reference fee so far.

So! I would have expected to have acopy of the agreement much earlier. I fact I would not consider having agreed to move in until I had one.

Adereterial

Your tenancy agreement will probably require you to have contents insurance. However, you are free to arrange your own, just use the comparison websites to find one that suits your needs. You’ll probably find it cheaper than that. It is not a legal requirement but it is absolutely not something you should consider optional.

Tell them no.

Comms69

Asking for a draft agreement is very sensible.


As for insurance, whether your tenancy agreement requires it or not is largely irrelevant. They cannot force you to claim against it; and in most cases these policies cover very little.

Comms69

Adereterial wrote: »

Your tenancy agreement will probably require you to have contents insurance. However, you are free to arrange your own, just use the comparison websites to find one that suits your needs. You’ll probably find it cheaper than that. It is not a legal requirement but it is absolutely not something you should consider optional.

Tell them no.

That would be totally illogical. Contents insurance only covers the tenants property.

[Deleted User]

Never had a tenancy that compelled getting insurance, and for many years had non at all as I couldn't afford it.

bflare

Comms69 wrote: »

That would be totally illogical. Contents insurance only covers the tenants property.

The place is fully furnished. Not sure if this makes a difference?

Comms69

bflare wrote: »

The place is fully furnished. Not sure if this makes a difference?

Contents insurance would still only cover your property. As you aren't legal owner of the sofa etc. most policies wont cover you. You can get liability insurance, which would protect you should your own negligence cause damage.

Pixie5740

It's just another way for letting agents to fleece tenants. It's not contents insurance they are selling per se it's contents insurance for the landlord's contents paid for by the tenant who is also paying a deposit.

There are other insurance providers offering this type of product, I think Endsleigh do. My advice would be to get the insurance from another provider, not one giving a kickback to the letting agents, show it to the letting agents and then cancel it within the 14 day cooling off period.