Whether you spend Christmas at home, or spend it in your second or holiday home, it’s likely that you’ll have a property which is unoccupied for some time. Here we look at how to ‘winterise’ an unoccupied property, to maintain its safety and security.
Protecting Your Home in Winter
Since leaving a property unoccupied for weeks or even months at a time exposes them to increased theft or events which worsen over time, such as escape of water, you’ll find insurers place increased terms or conditions on properties whilst they are left unattended.
Here we look into some simple tips and tricks to prepare a property for a length of unoccupancy, or just prepare you for the conditions an insurance company might expect from you.
What to Check for First
Make sure your cover includes:
- Building cover: In addition to the main property, this provides cover for outbuildings, swimming pools, tennis courts, etc.
- Contents cover: This provides cover for the personal effects of your home.
- Liability cover: This provides cover in the event that a guest, gardener, or seasonal tenant is injured on the property.
If you’re missing any of these covers, you might be missing out on crucial protection.
Maintenance Tasks
Along with purchasing bespoke cover, perform the following maintenance to ensure your unoccupied home stays safe:
- Turn off the utilities or maintain a minimum temperature
Turn off the water and gas, or if your home has a thermostat, set the temperature to a minimum temperature. This varies from insurer to insurer, but is typically set at 12C or 15C. Check with your broker, as they will be able to find out if your policy contains this information. Some insurers may even ask you to remove the loft hatch to allow excess heat to escape and prevent build-up of excess moisture in the air.
- Winterise the home’s pipes and exterior
If you are turning off the services, ensure that all the water pipes are drained to protect against expanding freezing water and the pipes and lines are properly insulated. Inspect the seals around windows and doors for any leaks, and have the gutters cleaned.
- Lock up valuables
Perform maintenance on vehicles before securely locking them away. Store any valuables away from windows. For high value items, use a safe in an alarmed area of the house. Even better if the safe is hidden from view and anchored to the floor or wall.
- Schedule maintenance
Have any nearby trees trimmed, any garden tools securely stored, and the lawn cut. If you trust a second key-holder, ask them to inspect the property both inside and out on a regular basis. This gives the illusion of occupancy and protects against events which worsen over time.
- Activate security devices
Make sure the home is fitted with security devices such as alarms and window locks to deter theft.
- Check with your broker
Every insurance policy and home is unique, and deserves a unique approach. Appoint a broker to look after your risks, and discuss with then openly your situation and what you can reasonably do over the holiday period. They will arrange with your insurance company what you need to do, and advise you of how to better protect the things most important to you.
https://www.turnerinsurance.co.uk/personal/
