Urgent Query - A) Building Insurance & B) Vacant Property Insurance

Nardge

Good afternoon!

I am shortly to exchange contracts on the purchase of a house and am therefore quite pressed.

The Property will require some significant refurbishment etc, and it is likely I'll not be suitably positioned to move in there perhaps for a matter of months.

My Conveyancer suggested taking out both the above insurances as a result.

I'll be reading through the various MSE pages on the same subject, but on quick review,
already I see no mention of 'Vacant Property Insurance'. If it's there, I have missed it.

I have some questions:

1) Is it necessary to take out both insurances or can Buildings Insurance be bought that covers Vacant Property Insurance too?

2) Is there a specific company(s) readers are familiar with, who' they'd either recommend or suggest avoidance of?

3) Can I declare and insure the 'bought-for' house price now, and then renegotiate it once the rebuild value is known - either by a Survey, or through the  Association of British Insurers' calculator.

4) For the calculator, how can I establish the exact year the house was built together with it's exact surface area (there appears to be discrepancy in surface area between different property websites).

I look forward to and thank you for any assistance you can give me,

With Kind Regards

sammyjammy

Its not just that the house its vacant its that you'll be doing building work that will impact your insurance, I would suggest using a broker.

FlorayG

Normal buildings insurance states "the property will not be left unoccupied for more than X days consecutive, please inform us if this is expected" so when you get your buildings insurance tell them it's going to be empty for x months and they should adjust the premium accordingly. Although if it needs so much work that it's currently uninhabitable you may need a different kind of insurance

user1977

They're the same thing, we're just talking about a buildings insurance policy which allows the property to be unoccupied.

Nardge

Grateful for these responses and those which may follow.

If it helps the reader, the refurbishments are perhaps not so huge...
The property was fully renovated within, it is inhabitable already.
The issue is that the external walls, rainwater goods, chimney, and ground floor timbers, all need a full overhaul...
 

DullGreyGuy

Is the property currently occupied? The issue with the X days unoccupied is that it will count from the day the last person was living in it not from the date you get the economic interest in the property so if its already been vacant for 6 months then you've got to factor that in. 

Make sure you understand the condition of the unoccupied home insurance, many require certain actions to be taken after bands of duration and these can vary significantly. It'd be up to you to decide if you want a cheap policy that requires windows to be boarded/letterbox blocked or possibly pay more for a cover that only requires you to turn off the water or keep the heating on at 12C in winter months etc.