Any experience with insuring against tenants not paying rent?

motorman99

Hi all
thanks in advance for any help

As a long term landlord I’m now getting a bit older and need more certainty, especially with the proposed law changes
i was wondering if anyone out there had any experience either good bad or indifferent regarding insurance against rent default?
I realise tenants have to be credit checked etc in order to comply .
just to add I’ve been lucky so far and never had a problem in 30 years! 

The reason I’m asking is that I don’t want one in the next 30 years either…if I live that long 
TIA 

housebuyer143

We used to issue one at the agents I worked at but it wasn't great. They only paid rent in arrears and there was a month's excess, so your tenant had to be two full months into arrears before you got any pay out at all. If they made a months rent payment then they insurer wanted it back first and foremost. 
They did start mandatory court proceedings at month 2 though for arrears and this was covered by them. Most landlords though just got caught out by the long wait for the money. 

Don't forget also that during COVID when the government put a ban on evictions the rent guarantee companies refused to pay out citing unforseen circumstances.

If you do it, read the small print because as with most insurance, they are out to screw you.

lika_86

Have you considered just building up a pot of money that would cover the time it took you to get them out?

motorman99

Thanks for help
Ive got pot of money to cover it, just don’t want any aggro.
my thoughts going forward were either insurance or only rent to someone with a guarantor that stacks up. 

Anything for a quiet life. 

eddddy

A landlord told me his experience of using an insurer, and making successful claims. I don't know if all insurers operate in the same way, but his comments included...

• The insurers want to thoroughly vet tenants before insuring their rent. So if you want to start insuring your current tenants, they'd need to be agree to be vetted and they would have to pass the vetting

• The insurers specify very precise rules that the landlord must follow. For example...

• • The landlord must send a specifically worded warning letter to the tenant within x days of the first missed rent payment
• • The landlord must issue a (valid) section 8 eviction notice, on the earliest allowable date

• The landlord told me that many other landlords pay their letting agents to follow all the rules, but he preferred to do it himself

My impression of the 'insurance company' was that they were essentially an aggressive debt collection company - who offered "Rent Insurance" as a sideline to generate more business.  

The business model seemed to be essentially this...

• The landlord pays the 'insurance company' a fee/premium each month for each tenant

• If the tenant doesn't pay rent to the landlord, the 'insurance company' will pay the landlord

• Then the 'insurance company' will send in their aggressive debt collectors to persuade the tenant to pay them back their money 

The 'insurance company' seemed to be able to add 'collection fees' to the amount the tenant had to pay - I guess this must have been a term in the AST that the tenant had to sign.


On one occasion, a tenant did a runner owing about £1k in rent. Apparently, when the 'insurance company' debt collectors eventually tracked him down - he had to pay about £2.5k in total, because of the added fees. (I don't know if some of the fees resulted from enforcing a CCJ.)

The extra £1.5k fees went to the 'insurance company' (or maybe some of it was court fees). It didn't go to the landlord.


I don't know if other rent insurance companies follow this model.

user1977

motorman99 said:

Thanks for help
Ive got pot of money to cover it, just don’t want any aggro.
my thoughts going forward were either insurance or only rent to someone with a guarantor that stacks up. 

Anything for a quiet life. 

But it sounds like you've had a quiet life for 30 years! Not sure why you'd want to rock the boat.

Having an insurer or a guarantor doesn't make all your problems go away, it just changes what happens if a tenant doesn't pay.

ReadySteadyPop

motorman99 said:

Hi all
thanks in advance for any help

As a long term landlord I’m now getting a bit older and need more certainty, especially with the proposed law changes
i was wondering if anyone out there had any experience either good bad or indifferent regarding insurance against rent default?
I realise tenants have to be credit checked etc in order to comply .
just to add I’ve been lucky so far and never had a problem in 30 years! 

The reason I’m asking is that I don’t want one in the next 30 years either…if I live that long 
TIA 

What are the proposed law changes?

motorman99

ReadySteadyPop said:

motorman99 said:

Hi all
thanks in advance for any help

As a long term landlord I’m now getting a bit older and need more certainty, especially with the proposed law changes
i was wondering if anyone out there had any experience either good bad or indifferent regarding insurance against rent default?
I realise tenants have to be credit checked etc in order to comply .
just to add I’ve been lucky so far and never had a problem in 30 years! 

The reason I’m asking is that I don’t want one in the next 30 years either…if I live that long 
TIA 

What are the proposed law changes?

End of section 21
end of fixed term ast
i think once labour get in rent controls more likely….and if no section 21 then you can’t rent to someone else for market value 
I also think with labour that section 8 likely to be more lax towards tenants. 

Tbh I’m wondering whether to carry on or cash out….could cash out quite nicely and have no worries, but strangely I enjoy being a good landlord and looking after my tenants….despite my comments on possible law changes I’m no Rachman….i do look after them !

propertyrental

latest news I saw said the end of S21 was being watered down.......

https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3462

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/renters-reform-bill-fast-becoming-landlords-charter-after-gove-s-concessions-say-campaigners/ar-BB1kHpoG

an amendment will be brought forward requiring “the Lord Chancellor to publish an assessment on barriers to possession and the readiness of the courts in advance of abolishing section 21 for existing tenancies”......

“This watered-down plan means the vast majority of renters still face being evicted from their homes through no fault of their own.