Is your holiday home insured during the big freeze?
Yet again, heavy snow and sub-zero temperatures are causing chaos across the UK, Spain, France and Europe. As temperatures plummet, holiday homes and cottages are particularly vulnerable to water damage caused by burst pipes – especially those which are left empty.
The cold snap last winter resulted in a sharp increase in holiday home insurance claims for water damage, which not only caused significant damage but also emotional trauma. According to AXA, there was a 60% rise in claims last winter compared to the previous year and the average burst pipe claim was £15,000.
With Britain facing one of the coldest winters in 100 years, water damage claims from burst pipes are expected to increase yet again this winter.
Are you covered for water damage from burst pipes?
Maybe not? Water damage is the most common insurance claim for holiday homes, therefore some holiday home insurance policies have strict obligations that the insured must comply with for a claim to be valid.
To avoid being uninsured for water damage from burst pipes, check your policy for heating terms and unoccupancy warranties in the small print. Some insurance policies exclude all damage caused by escape of water where a property has remained unoccupied for a period of more than 30 days, because the water system hasn’t been drained or the heating maintained at a specified minimum temperature.
Even if you leave your electric heating on and it fails due to a power cut (which are common in France and Spain during winter storms) you could be uninsured. In theory, if this happens you are in breach of the terms of the policy because the temperature wasn’t maintained to the minimum requirement.
In short, beware of policies where the small print makes claims virtually impossible due to exclusions. Choose a comprehensive second home insurance policy that doesn’t include heating and unoccupancy warranties that might invalidate your water damage claim.
Steps to prevent burst pipes
As always, prevention is better than cure. There are a number of things that can be done to protect your water system during freezing conditions to prevent burst pipes. However, these events are often unforeseen (after all that’s why we purchase insurance). Follow this advice should your holiday home suffer a burst pipe.
Always get clarification from your insurer on what happens following a burst pipe and ask – under what terms are you covered?