es. Our unoccupied home insurance policy provides automatic cover for non-structural projects with a total value of less than £50,000.
Unlike many insurers who require you to discuss these works or pay additional premiums, Insuristic includes them as standard.
What is covered automatically (No referral needed):
Modernisation: Re-wiring and plumbing.
Decoration: Plastering, painting, and flooring.
Replacements: New kitchens, bathrooms, windows, and doors.
What we can cover on referral: If your project is more ambitious, we can still help. If you complete our online quote form, our underwriting team at SJL Insurance will contact you to discuss structural projects, such as:
Extensions & Loft Conversions.
Structural Alterations: Demolishing partition walls to merge rooms.
Basement Additions.
Listed Buildings.
We offer flexible policies you can tailor to the project. Choose 3, 6, 9 or 12 months, with the ability to extend or cancel at any time:
If your works finish early or the property becomes occupied again, and no claims have been made, you’ll receive a pro-rata refund for any unused cover. If the project overruns — or you need extra time while searching for tenants — you can extend easily at renewal.
This flexibility makes it simple to match your insurance with your project timeline.
The cost depends on several factors:
In addition, where structural work is involved:
Where we have quoted online, the average Insuristic customer spends £265, including insurance premium tax, and purchased our silver cover for six months.
You must ensure your contractors have public liability insurance for the work they are undertaking. Your insurance will not cover any damage they cause to your property; this is what their insurance is for.
We will not cover any loose fixtures and fittings until they are installed. These items will then form the buildings, so you must ensure that the building rebuild value provided is sufficient to cover these enhancements to your property.
Always request copies of your contractor’s Public Liability, Employers’ Liability, and Contract Works insurance before work begins.
Even when the property is in a raw state, to stay covered, you must comply with your policy documents, paying attention to:
You should also consider that new installations are not covered by our buildings insurance policy until they are installed. So you should check your contracts have what is called a Contract Works policy to cover the stock and materials untol thw works are completed and installed.
Here are some common FAQs. You can find many more on our Unoccupied Home Insurance FAQ page.
Yes, if your property will be unoccupied for more than 30 days and undergoing building work, you’ll likely need specialist Empty Home Renovation Insurance cover. Without the right policy, you could face rejected claims or even policy cancellation.
If you’ll still be living in the property during works, you should discuss this with your existing insurer first. our Empty Home Renovation Insurance will not be appropriate for your needs.
If the home will be empty, you’ll likely need an Unoccupied Home Insurance policy that will insure renovations.
No, as the property is unoccupied during renovation.
No, in a Empty Home Renovation Insurance policy, fixtures, fittings and materials awaiting installation are not covered until they are fixed to the property. They then form part of the buildings, so you must ensure your rebuild value reflects this.
You will need to provide:
If you are unsure about anything our claims team at SJL Insurance will advise you every step of the way.
Yes—most lenders require adequate insurance during renovations to protect their interest.
If their cover is invalid or inadequate, you may face gaps in protection. Your insurance policy won’t cover any damage they cause. Always check their policy documents for evidence of cover before work begins.
Yes, you can cancel your Empty Home Renovation Insurance policy early. We don’t charge to cancel and provide pro-rata refunds (subject to no claims).
If you have a loan or mortgage against the property, it is likely your lender will require this. It’s easy to do this on the cover page when requesting your Empty Home Renovation Insurance quote. The interested party will be listed on the quote and policy schedule if you need to provide a copy of the policy documents to the lender.
You can easily extend your Empty Home Renovation Insurance cover online if the works are non-structural, or contact your underwriter at SJL Insurance if they handled the structural renovation insurance.
Empty Home Renovation Insurance is designed to protect the existing structure of your property (and optional contents) while it is unoccupied and undergoing works. Cover typically includes:
Fire, lightning, explosion, earthquake, and aircraft (FLEEA)
Storm, flood, weight of snow, falling trees or poles
Escape of water or oil (subject to conditions)
Malicious damage, theft or attempted theft
Property owners’ liability up to £2 million (or £5 million on some tiers)
Your chosen policy level (Bronze, Silver or Gold) determines which perils are included.
You should check that your contractors must hold their own insurance for the works until it is installed, and also public liability insurance in case they damage your property or injure you or the public.
Our policy protects the property itself, not the building works in progress.
Yes, in almost all cases. If your property will be empty for more than 30 days and you are carrying out renovations, your standard home insurance will usually restrict or remove cover.
Empty Home Renovation Insurance ensures you remain protected during this period. It keeps your property covered while building work takes place and satisfies the requirements of most mortgage lenders, who expect adequate insurance even if the property is temporarily vacant.
Rob Faulkner is an ACII Chartered Insurance Broker with nearly 30 years' experience in the UK insurance market. He is also a Chartered Manager and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing.
As the founder of Insuristic, Rob has developed clear, flexible insurance solutions for property owners and people managing empty homes.
You’ll also find Rob writing regularly about probate insurance and risk management, another key area of his expertise.
He’s especially passionate about product development and improving insurance education through marketing to help people understand what they are buying, values that shape everything we do at Insuristic.
Want to learn more? Visit my author page or follow me on LinkedIn.
Insuristic Limited is an Appointed Representative of SJL (Worcester) Ltd, who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority with the reference number 763599. This can be checked by visiting https://register.fca.org.uk/s/.
Registered Office: Unit 2, 262 Walsall Road, Cannock, England, WS11 0JL. Registered in England and Wales No: 13926650.
Insuristic is a registered trademark. ©Copyright 2023 Insuristic Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.