Does home insurance cover swimming pools and hot tubs?

Does home insurance cover hot tubs and swimming pools?

Hot tubs and swimming pools are expensive to install, run and maintain. So you want to protect them properly.

The good news is that you can relax in the knowledge that the right home insurance can cover them against damage and theft. So you can lie back and enjoy them at your leisure.

What type of home cover will you need? It depends on whether your pool or hot tub are permanent fixtures or if they’re moveable. This will determine whether they can be covered by your home contents or your home buildings policy.

Buildings cover

If your swimming pool or hot tub is a permanent fixture fitted into the ground belonging to your house, they’d be covered by your buildings insurance. That’s because they’re considered part of the structure of your house.

They’d be covered for loss or damage that’s the result of things like a fire, storm, flood, or vandalism.

For accidental damage to your swimming pool or hot tub you may need to pay for extra cover.

Contents cover

Moveable possessions are covered by a contents insurance policy. So, if you have a portable, inflatable swimming pool or hot tub in your garden, it could be covered by your contents insurance.

Check your policy to confirm that the contents of your garden are included in your cover, though. Most will include a set amount of cover for garden contents, protecting them against theft, loss or damage. But not all do. If yours doesn’t include it as standard, you should be able to buy garden cover as an optional extra.

Be aware that your garden insurance may only cover items that are locked away and securely stored overnight - in your shed or garage, for example. And that you may need to list expensive pools and hot tubs separately on your policy and pay extra for them to be fully covered.

There may also be exclusions on the policy, like loss or damage caused by storms, flood, frost and garden bonfires.

How can liability cover help me?

Personal liability cover is included in many home insurance policies.

It protects you against third party liability claims. Say, if an accident happens on your property and you’re sued for damages and costs.

It may not be something that you’ve thought about. But it could help if a friend slipped and was badly injured while climbing in or out of your swimming pool or hot tub. Personal liability cover can pay out if they make a claim against you for medical expenses or loss of income and you’re found liable.

There’ll be a maximum limit for how much you can claim detailed in your policy documents.

Will getting a pool increase the cost of my home insurance?

It could. Fixed swimming pools with foundations and fitted hot tubs are expensive items that will hike up the rebuild cost of your property. That means you might need to pay more for your buildings insurance premium.

Inflatable hot tubs and pools don’t come cheap either, so you may have to pay extra to insure them separately on your policy.

Insurers will consider the risk of your pool or hot tub being accidentally damaged or even leaking and damaging your other possessions. There’s the danger that someone could have an accident in your pool or hot tub, too.

All of these risks could mean an increase in your premium.

What’s a single-article limit?

You may find that your contents insurance and garden cover may exclude an expensive item like a hot tub because it exceeds the single-item limit on your policy.

This is the maximum amount your insurer will pay out for any one item. It’s often between £1,500 and £2,000.

If your hot tub or pool is worth more than this, you’ll need to pay an extra fee to list it separately on your policy for it to be fully insured.

Does insurance cover gradual damage to a pool or hot tub?

No, insurance isn’t designed to cover damage that happens gradually over time. Or that happens due to misuse or negligence. So aim to keep your pool or tub well-maintained and in a good state of repair.