A coach house property is a flat/apartment above usually 2 or 3 Garages or Carports. When you buy a Coach House property you would normally purchase the freehold, and so it would fall to you to insure the whole building. As a freeholder one of the garages or carports would be yours, and the rest on 999 Year Peppercorn leasehold’s to neighbours.
Coach House Home Insurance
As the Freeholder the Insurance for the whole building will fall to you. You must Insurance the property as a ‘Coach House’. NOT as a flat or apartment. You are required to insure the garages and carports on behalf of the leaseholder’s – the Property Insurance you need is very specific and a niche product that is tricky to buy online as easily as you would ordinary Home Insurance. You would do best to seek out the advice of a specialist Insurer who can guide you.
Where Can I Buy Specific Insurance From?
There are a few Coach House Property Specialist Insurers around – you need to target your online searches and make sure you shop around. Due to the nature of the property these insurances need specific underwriting and costs vary greatly between providers/brokers. You will also need to make sure you are not slammed with admin fees.
Is Coach House Home Insurance Expensive?
No! It will require some effort in terms of research to make sure you have the right policy but it is not expensive. It is not expensive providing you are speaking to the right Insurance Broker anyway!
Do the Garage Leaseholder’s have to contribute to the cost of the Coach House Insurance Policy?
This is determined by what is written in the Title Deeds of the Coach House Property – and what is written in the Peppercorn Leasehold Document. It is common that there would be a small percentage of the Buildings Insurance payable by each Leaseholder – but this is normally a nominal contribution – and it is only applicable to the Buildings section of the policy.
The cost of Contents Insurance would have to be deducted to calculate what is owed by the Leaseholder’s. If you need full Home Buildings and Contents Property Insurance You should have a joint policy for the two elements as this will control overall cost for you. In the event of a claim you would only have 1 excess to pay – instead of having 2 policies and 2 Excesses.
It would usually at least double the cost of Insurance if you were to have a Separate policy for the Buildings Insurance, and the Contents Insurance.
Best Advice
The Best advice would be to talk to a specialist who knows these types of property’s and is familiar with your Insurance needs. It is no good calling into a vast call centre where the advisors have no clue what a Coach House Property even is! You need to talk to someone who is clear about the legal liabilities facing you as a freeholder of a Coach House Property. This would normally be a UK Insurance Broker.
These types of Policies are very easy and straightforward to set up providing you are talking to a specialist, and won’t cost you the earth. It may seem daunting to begin with – but don’t worry! Landlords Insurance is also available for these types of properties – providing you are speaking to the right company that is! Landlords Insurance for Coach House Properties is no more expensive than ordinary Insurance for any type of Let Property.
Remember to target your research to the specific product you are looking for – rather than just a generic ring round the usual household names – you won’t find it there. Specifically request what information you need – ask specific questions so that you can understand exactly what you are obliged to provide in terms of Insurance. Garage Leaseholder’s are not required to source Insurance for the property – it falls solely on the Freeholders shoulders.
As with all Insurance documents – when you purchase your policy you must review your documents to ensure your property is listed correctly as a ‘Coach House’, and that the garages and/or Carports are specified on the policy/Buildings Insurance Schedule. If your property is listed as a Flat or a Maisonette for example – then you will need to query this with the Insurer and potentially be prepared to change Insurance Providers.
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