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Landlord contents insurance

Join over 315,000 property owners like you with cover from £9.53 per month*

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Rated 4.7/5

Based on 39,755 reviews

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Claims paid in 24 hours

For 80% of settled claims

What's on this page

  • Why is insurance important?
  • What does it cover?
  • How much does it cost?
  • How do I choose insurance?
  • How do claims work?
  • FAQs
  • Helpful articles

Why is landlord contents insurance important?

From TVs to dining chairs, many landlords choose to furnish their rental property. There’s always a risk that something will get damaged or stolen, so landlord contents insurance is a popular cover for UK rental property owners. You can buy it as part of a complete landlord insurance policy, adding in other protection for the building itself if you need to.

  • landlord contents insurance, UK-based contact and claims team
  • no excess to pay and quick turnaround – 80 percent of settled claims paid in 24 hours
  • accidental or malicious – cover for damage, plus lost items, fire and water damage

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What does content insurance cover?

Landlord content insurance is designed to cover repair and replacement costs for your free-standing items – not ‘fixed’ into the property – if they get damaged, lost or stolen. This can include things like standalone kitchen appliances, furniture and decorative items like paintings or mirrors.

Keep in mind, all insurers treat this cover differently, and some will consider certain property to be your fixtures and fittings, rather than your contents – for example, your carpets. Check your policy wording carefully before you buy.

Accidental damage or loss

What does this cover?

Any damage caused to your landlord contents that’s considered accidental, or loss contents which aren’t fitted into the property, like sofas, tables, and lamps

When would I need to make a claim?

  • for example, your new tenant’s toddler accidentally knocks a lamp off the hallway table onto the wooden floor, causing it to break

What isn’t covered?

  • old contents left at the property but not intended for the current tenants’ use, like personal possessions wear and tear, maintenance, product defects, faulty workmanship
  • contents left in properties which are empty or vacant for 30 days (or more, depending on your insurer) – you’ll usually need specific unoccupied property insurance for these

You’ll usually need to select ‘accidental damage cover’ when buying your landlord insurance policy, for your contents to get this protection. Some insurers cover it as standard, but check your policy wording carefully before you buy.

Fire

What does this cover?

damage to your landlord contents caused by a fire contents which aren’t fitted into the property, like sofas, tables, and lamps

When would I need to make a claim?

  • for example, a fire caused by an oven spreads across the flat you’re renting out, destroying your new living room furniture

What isn’t covered?

  • old contents left at the property but not intended for the current tenants’ use, like personal possessions
  • malicious fire damage, in some cases (this will depend on your specific insurer)
  • fire caused by rioting

Flood

What does this cover?

  • damage to your landlord contents caused by a flood
  • contents which aren’t fitted into the property, like sofas, tables, and lamps

When would I need to make a claim?

  • for example, heavy rain causes severe flooding in your property’s kitchen and living spaces, damaging an expensive kitchen table and new sofa

What isn’t covered?

  • old contents left at the property but not intended for the current tenants’ use, like personal possessions
  • flooding caused by fluctuations in the water table and other gradually occurring incidents over time
  • frost damage
  • contents left in properties which are empty or vacant for 30 days (or more, depending on your insurer) – you’ll usually need specific unoccupied property insurance for these

Malicious damage

You might claim for this if someone intentionally damages your contents

How much cover will I get?

We provide cover from £2,500 to £10,000 for each malicious damage claim, depending on which insurer you choose.

For example:

  • a brick is thrown through your property’s window, damaging the TV you’ve supplied, and a lamp

What isn’t covered?

  • old contents left at the property but not intended for the current tenants’ use, like personal possessions
  • contents left in empty or vacant properties – you’ll usually need specific unoccupied property insurance for these
  • malicious damage by tenants isn’t covered by all insurers

Always check your policy wording carefully before you buy, to make sure you have the right cover for your property.

Storm

What does this cover?

  • damage to your landlord contents caused by a storm
  • contents which aren’t fitted into the property, like sofas, tables, and lamps

For example:

  • a lightning storm causes an overcharge, damaging some electrical contents inside your property

What isn’t covered?

  • old contents left at the property but not intended for the current tenants’ use, like personal possessions
  • contents left in empty or vacant properties – you’ll usually need specific unoccupied property insurance for these
  • flooding caused by fluctuations in the water table and other gradually occurring incidents over time
  • frost damage

Subsidence, ground heave, or landslip

What does this cover?

  • structural damage caused by soil expansion beneath the property
  • contents which aren’t fitted into the property, like sofas, tables, and lamps

When would I need to make a claim?

  • for example, heavy rain over the Christmas holiday causes a ground heave, damaging lamps, furniture, and electrical items you’ve supplied for your tenants

What isn’t covered?

  • old contents left at the property but not intended for the current tenants’ use, like personal possessions
  • incidents which began before your policy’s start date
  • coastal or river erosion and other specific exclusions, for some insurers

Theft

What does this cover?

  • landlord contents which are stolen from your property
  • contents which aren’t fitted into the property, like sofas, tables, and lamps

When would I need to make a claim?

  • for example, while your tenants are at work, thieves break into your property and steal electrical equipment which you’ve provided

What isn’t covered?

  • old contents left at the property but not intended for the current tenants’ use, like personal possessions
  • contents left in empty or vacant properties – you’ll usually need specific unoccupied property insurance for these
  • tenant theft or theft by someone lawfully at the premises, in some cases, depending on your insurer

Escape of water or oil

You might claim for this if a leak causes damage to your contents.

What's escape of water or oil insurance?

This insurance can pay for repair and replacement costs, if a large amount of water leaks inside your property (not caused by an outside flood), or oil leaks from a heating system and damages your contents.

For example:

  • a pipe bursts in the bathroom, damaging soft furnishings in the nursery and master bedroom

What isn’t covered?

  • old contents left at the property but not intended for the current tenants’ use, like personal possessions
  • contents left in empty or vacant properties – you’ll usually need specific unoccupied property insurance for these
  • damage caused by sprinkler systems, in some cases – this will depend on your insurer

This content has been created for general information purposes. Make sure you have the right level of landlord insurance by checking your policy documentation for details. Read our full Terms and Conditions

How much does landlord contents insurance cost?

Find out how much you’ll pay by comparing prices from a range of trusted insurers. You choose what goes into your policy, so you only pay for what you need.

Prices start from £9.53 per month

Get your quotes in 7 minutes – prices are guaranteed for 30 days.

Get your tailored quotes in 7 minutes

Start your quote

*How we work out example prices 10% of our customers paid up to £114.35 a year for a landlord buildings cover only policy between 1st April 2023 - 30th June 2023. Equivalent to £9.53 per month based on a monthly cost when paying for the policy in one annual payment. Paying monthly is usually more expensive as you'll pay interest. Most customers pay more than this but some pay less.

Example contents insurance quotes, real prices

churchill insurance

£24.27 /month

£215.72 /year

Landlord renting a detached house to a young couple

  • Residential
  • Detached house
  • 3 bedrooms
  • 1 bathroom
  • Built between 1990 and 2000
  • Over 5 years
  • Occupied
  • Based in Edinburgh
  • Landlord buildings

    £200,001 to £250,000

  • Landlords' contents

    £7,501 to £10,000

  • Accidental Damage

    Include

  • Property owners' liability

    £2,000,000

churchill insurance

£48.22 /month

£428.63 /year

Renting a whole house to a large family

  • Residential
  • Detached house
  • 4 bedrooms
  • 2 bathrooms
  • Built between 1980 and 1989
  • Over 5 years
  • Occupied
  • Based in Blackpool
  • Landlord buildings

    £250,001 to £300,000

  • Landlords' contents

    £20,001 to £25,000

  • Property owners' liability

    £5000000

How we work out example quotes These examples are real quotes from our online system (created 20/08/2021). They’re based on a range of factors, like employees and location. Your own quote will be based on what you tell us about your property. Prices may go up or down from day to day, so the prices you’re quoted may differ to the ones you see here.

How it works

  • Pick what goes into your policy

    Only pay for what you need

  • Get prices from a range of insurers

    Choose the best fit for you

  • Buy online in minutes

    Get your documents the same day

Start your quote

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Our team of UK-based insurance experts are here to help, Mon 09.00am - 05.30pm, Tues 09.00am - 05.30pm, Weds 09.00am - 05.30pm, Thurs 09.30am - 05.30pm, Fri 09.00am - 05.30pm, Sat 09.00am - 02.00pm

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How do claims work?

Unlike price comparison websites, we take the hassle out of claims for you. We know how important it is to get your business back on track quickly – and with a minimum of fuss. That’s why you get access to your dedicated claims any time, day or night. Call them on 0333 207 0560 or claim online. They’ll do their best to be fair and supportive.

£39 million in claims paid out in 2022

Paying 80% of settled claims within 24 hours in 2022

The figure above is rounded across our range of products. Our claims process may vary for different products and operates on a ‘claim by claim’ basis.

Example claim

Having contents insurance for a rental property through Simply Business has saved landlords thousands of pounds when the unexpected happened.

Stuart saved more than £10,200

Stuart (not his real name) received a call from his tenant over the Christmas holiday, reporting severe storm and flood damage to his property’s ground floor. Kitchen contents, soft furnishings, decorative items, and other unfixed items were damaged, but the landlord contents insurance added to his policy covered Stuart’s replacement and repair costs.

  • Insurance payout

    £10,264.30

    Covering the cost of storm and flood

  • Stuart’s costs

    £100

    The excess amount stated in Stuart’s policy terms

Chosen by 900,000 small businesses and landlords

We started out as a team of five back in 2005. We’ve grown since then with 315,000 landlord customers now trusting us to provide their insurance.

  • Compare and buy in minutes

    Documents arrive today

  • Rated 4.7/5

    Based on 39,755 reviews

  • Here to help

    Help from UK-based experts

  • 24/7 claims

    Make a claim any time

Landlord contents insurance FAQs

Whether you’re new to buying landlord insurance or you’ve been letting your property for a while, here are the answers to some commonly asked questions about landlord contents insurance. You can also check out our landlord insurance FAQs.

  • If you’ve provided furniture and other contents for your tenants – maybe even a TV or art for the walls – your property is known as ‘furnished’, and protection is key for most landlords. You can buy contents insurance as part of your landlord insurance policy, just add it when completing your landlord insurance quote(s).

  • Buildings insurance covers the physical structure of the property including the walls, roof, and floors. Items inside the property, like furniture and freestanding appliances, are usually protected by specific ‘contents insurance’.

  • There’s currently no legal obligation to take out a dedicated landlord insurance policy. However, a home insurance policy won’t cover you for the specific risks you and your tenants face, and a mortgage lender will usually require you to have buy-to-let insurance in place too, before renting out your property.

    Popular covers include property owners’ liability and contents insurance, for accidents on your property, plus buildings cover to protect the property itself.

  • This will depend on your specific circumstances, the type of property you’re renting out, your tenants and various other factors. Right now, our landlord policy prices start from £16.34 per month.

    To work this out, we take the highest price from the bottom 10 per cent of all our customers paying in monthly instalments (based on data from 1 1 January - 31 August 2021). Most customers pay more than this but some pay less.

This content has been created for general information purposes. Make sure you have the right level of landlord insurance by checking your policy documentation for details. Read our full Terms and Conditions.

We create this content for general information purposes and it should not be taken as advice. Always check policy documentation for details and seek professional advice. Read our full Terms and Conditions

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