Unoccupied Premises

Most household insurance policies say that if you leave your home "unoccupied" for a period of time, normally 30 or 60 days, then you will not be covered for certain "insured perils" (usually theft, attempted theft, malicious damage and escape of water). It is however often unclear exactly what an insurer means when it talks of a property being "unoccupied".

The Financial Ombudsman Service has some helpful advice on this subject. Their essential position is that they do not consider it good practice for insurers to decline to pay out where the policyholder’s breach of a policy condition has been only a technical breach that has not prejudiced the firm’s position in any way.

To read the full article, please click on the link below:

http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/ombudsman-news/34/unoccupied_properties-34.htm