If you’ve taken the plunge and bought your own dream home in the sun, getting it correctly insured might sound like a trivial matter – but there are a few things to consider, especially if you plan on letting your home to holidaymakers. It’s a valuable investment, so you’ll want to protect it!

We asked our insurance partners Intasure for some advice to pass on to our readers:

I own a holiday home overseas – what type of insurance do I need?

Insurance for an overseas property is similar to the UK. You’ll want to make sure you’ve got proper buildings and contents insurance that covers you for any eventuality. Communal insurance – e.g. for apartments – can be misleading, and will typically only cover the common parts of the blocks – not what’s inside.

I’m planning to let my holiday home, what else do I need to consider?

Check the policy provides adequate public liability cover. This will provide cover should someone suffer an injury at your property. Foreign insurers do not necessarily provide the same level of cover as those in the UK – in Spain cover is typically up to £200K, whereas Intasure provides £/€5million. Remember you could be sued back in UK for an injury that occurred. Accidental Damage (A/D) by tenants, loss of hiring charges and emergency travel costs in case your property is damaged and you need to get there.
Intasure include public liability insurance, loss of rent following a claim, emergency travel and accommodation as standard too.

Could you give some ballpark figures for the cost of annual insurance for some typical holiday homes?

Here are some approximate prices with and without accidental damage cover:

  • Three-bed villa with pool in the Costa Blanca with £10,000 contents and full accidental damage (A/D) cover:

    • £322.47 without A/D & £351.72 with A/D

  • Three-bed villa (shared pool) in Fethiye, Turkey, with £10,000 contents and full accidental damage cover:

    • £318.56 without A/D & £347.92 with A/D

  • Three-bed townhouse in the Algarve, Portugal, with £10,000 contents and full accidental damage cover:

    • £256.94 without A/D & £279.63 with A/D

  • Two-bed ski apartment in the French Alps with £5,000 contents and full accidental damage cover:

    • £192.58 without A/D & £208.84 with A/D


    What sorts of features of my holiday home will cause my insurance premium to be higher?

    As an example, Intasure gives blanket cover of up to £/€1million on the buildings, but the premium is calculated on the type of property you have and the number of bedrooms. We will ask you if you have a private pool/hot tub, non-habitable outbuildings, or a conservatory. These all have an impact on the premium – so a studio apartment will cost less than a four-bedroom villa with a pool!

    Will my premium and insurance requirements be different if I let on a long-term basis?

    Yes, there is a small extra charge for letting out a foreign property long term and it carries a special endorsement. However, if your property is in the UK and you let it out on a shorthold tenancy agreement you can take advantage of our landlord insurance.

    When it comes to choosing an insurer, are there any differences between using a local – to your overseas home – company and using a UK-based company?

    Yes the language is one – using a UK company you can be sure you’ll be dealing with English speakers. And the public liability limit is generally lower with local insurers.

    Also, with UK companies, payment can be made in Sterling by direct debit, all your documents are in English, and for certain countries an additional schedule is produced in the local language. Really it’s a question of peace of mind and being able to discuss any aspect of the cover in your own language.

    For more information and a quote, please visit the Rightmove Overseas Insurance Zone and if you need a quote, click here and we’ll get a representative from Intasure to call you right back!