Holiday home insurance

Lapping-up the luxury in your very own sun-soaked villa, snowy chalet, or forest lodge?

If you’re escaping the rat race at weekends or during the hols, keep your vacation bolt-hole safe - even when you’re away from the nest - with holiday home insurance.

An older holiday cottage may spring a leak or burst its water pipes in the winter, and a squeaky-clean modern build may attract burglars - but take the risks in your stride.

Whether issues are 20 minutes along on the motorway, or a ferry-ride across the channel, a good holiday home insurance policy will help you get problems sorted fast, and from afar, with the support of an insurer.

Holiday home cover versus home insurance

“Why can’t I buy normal home insurance?” we hear you cry?

It won’t cut the mustard, not by a mile, as insurers often exclude properties left empty for more than 30 days a year.

Do keep a sharp eye on ‘exclusions’ in the small print of holiday home policies, just to be safe.

What’s covered with holiday home insurance?

As standard, buildings cover - it’ll sub you the cost of repairs or rebuilding (minus any excess) if your holiday house falls victim to a muisfortune such as a fire, a serious storm, flood and/or subsidence. It’s also usually a lending requirement if you’ve got a mortgage for the property.

A top-spec holiday home insurance policy may include:

• Combined or separate buildings and contents cover. The latter isn’t a legal requirement, so you can take or leave it, but you'll only be covered for the bricks and mortar if you don't take it out
• Cover for emergency travel requirements
• Cover to reimburse local taxes
• 24-hour emergency helpline for when you’re really up a creek and need fast advice or assistance
• Emergency travel
• Personal possessions cover to protect your gear outside of the house

And, remember to tell your insurer about the locks - your premium will be different depending on what you have.

What’s excluded from holiday home insurance?

Your holiday home may not be covered if:

• It’s let for an extended period of time
• Guests steal from you
• It has solar panels
• It has boats, boards and watercraft within the home boundaries 

Try not to leave personal or valuable items in your holiday home if it's unoccupied or you're planning on letting it out - you may not be covered if items are stolen or damaged accidentally.

Holiday letting insurance

Renting the property out? That’s a whole new kettle of fish. When you compare holiday home insurance, your favourite policies should boast some or all of these benefits:

• Buildings and possessions cover
• Public liability protection to fund your legal costs and expenses if a guest gets hurt in your holiday home
• Cover for loss of rent
• Accidental damage
• Alternative accommodation - a saving grace in a home disaster scenario, such as a flood or fire
• Employer’s liability that covers legal costs and expenses if you have employees (think; cleaners, cooks, or guest concierge, as an example) get hurt while on the premises

Holiday home insurance in the UK and overseas

You’ll be able to find cover for most types of holiday home in the UK, such as cottages, chalets, cabins, lodges, static caravans, and apartments.

Tip of the day: whether you’re insuring holiday homes in Spain, France or Scotland, work out the rebuild costs. The expense will vary all around the world.

If you want to insure a static eco dome, yurt, or tipi, you can get specialist camping insurance.

Make sure you're not doubling up on insurance, as this can cause complications when claiming.

By Amanda Bathory