Buildings insurance—owners and landlords

Property insurance will generally cover:

•
damage or destruction
•
loss of rent
•
public liability

Let property – who insures?

Where property is let, the landlord will usually be responsible for maintaining insurance, recovering some or all of the costs from the tenant(s).

The landlord will clearly need to insure where the lease is of part only of a building, but even in the case of a lease of the whole of a single building the landlord may well prefer to retain control of the insurance so as to be sure that the building is fully covered at all times.

Where damage or destruction occurs, the landlord must use insurance monies to reinstate the property, making up any shortfall out of its own pocket.

Where the landlord insures, it is advisable to include specific tenant covenants:

•
against insuring the building (to avoid the risk of double insurance and the possible effect this might have on the recovery of insurance monies under the landlord's policy)
•
not to do, or fail to do, anything which would lead to the landlord's insurance becoming void or voidable

For

To view the latest version of this document and thousands of others like it, sign-in with LexisNexis or register for a free trial.

TAKE A FREE TRIAL

Latest Property News

HCLG Committee launches inquiry to assess housing condition improvements in England

The Housing, Communities and Local Government (HCLG) Committee has initiated a new inquiry into housing conditions in England, with a particular focus on hazards such as damp and mould in both the social housing and private rented sectors. The inquiry will evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed reforms to the Decent Homes Standard, Awaab’s Law, and the Renters’ Reform Bill, as well as measures designed to ensure the quality of new-build homes in line with the government’s target of constructing 1.5 million new homes. Additionally, it will examine conditions in temporary accommodation and assess how technology, regulation, and local authorities can address poor housing conditions. Public evidence sessions are scheduled to begin in September 2025, and written submissions will be accepted until 15 August 2025.

MHCLG launches consultation on implementing leasehold service charge reforms

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has launched a consultation to implement Part 4 of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 (LFRA 2024) and is seeking views on further proposed reforms relating to leasehold charges and services. The consultation proposes a number of measures, including: (1) the introduction of new standardised service charge documentation (encompassing annual reports and demand forms); (2) enhanced transparency for building insurance policies; and (3) rebalancing the litigation costs regime and removing barriers for leaseholders to challenge their landlord. This includes proposals to implement LFRA 2024 litigation cost measures requiring landlords to obtain court or tribunal approval before recovering such costs from leaseholders. The consultation closes on 26 September 2025.

Property weekly highlights—3 July 2025

This week's edition of Property weekly highlights includes: more on the Supreme Court decision which tweaked the Etridge principle, guidance on Awaab’s Law and on developer remediation contracts, reforms to the building safety regulator and cases on boundary determination and the validity of restrictive covenants and easements.

MHCLG announces £39bn social housing programme with new regulatory framework

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), led by Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, Angela Rayner MP, and Miatta Fahnbulleh MP, has announced a £39bn Social and Affordable Homes Programme. The scheme aims to deliver roughly 300,000 new homes over ten years. It also introduces regulatory changes, including an updated Decent Homes Standard for private rentals, new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards for social housing and a ten—year rent settlement starting in April 2026. A consultation on rent convergence measures will inform the Autumn Budget decision. This initiative forms a key element of the government’s broader Plan for Change, which aims to address the housing crisis and improve living standards, especially for the more than 165,000 children currently living in temporary accommodation.