Can t easily get insurance for a garage or outbuildings

[scotshaggis]

I just discovered cover was removed a year ago by my long term home insurers. They had “Separate domestic garage” down with me telling them I owned a separate garage just down from my house I wanted included.

I’m now discovering it is incredibly difficult to A) Have this included on a home insurance policy (mainly because it’s outwith my property boundary but also on separate deeds) and B) Equally difficult to find a separate garage or outbuilding policy.

Anyone able to help who has a separate private garage insured? Thanks

PS I did get one price through a broker but it was around £1200 so a crazy amount.

[alscar]

scotshaggis said:

I just discovered cover was removed a year ago by my long term home insurers. They had Separate domestic garage down with me telling them I owned a separate garage just down from my house I wanted included.

I m now discovering it is incredibly difficult to A) Have this included on a home insurance policy (mainly because it s outwith my property boundary but also on separate deeds) and B) Equally difficult to find a separate garage or outbuilding policy.

Anyone able to help who has a separate private garage insured? Thanks

PS I did get one price through a broker but it was around £1200 so a crazy amount.

Your PS has ruined my suggestion of going via a broker !
Having separate title shouldn't itself be the barrier though.
Maybe try another local broker -they may have access to a different panel of Insurers.
If your Insurer did include the garage after you told them why did they then remove it without telling you though ?

[scotshaggis]

Seemingly last years policy documents said it was removed. I believe just because they'd stopped offering cover for anything separate being the gist. As you say a separate title probably isn't a great issue.

There are so few brokers these days! But I'll look again. A few years ago I was going to rent someone a separate lock up I have within a group of lock up garages. She started fussing about whether I had it insured or not. I didn't. I tried then to find a policy thinking it ought not to be particularly costly to take out a buildings policy. Wrong. It too was difficult, and was not cheap. I think I got a quote from a broker of around £650. Crazy when you can insure a home and £50000 of contents for half of that.

I'd take out a separate policy for this garage I'm concerned about but there just doesn't seem to be anything easy to locate, which seems extraordinary,

Edited by scotshaggis on Wednesday 8th July 09:26

Edited by scotshaggis on Wednesday 8th July 09:26

[Neil-nvaua]

scotshaggis said:

There are so few brokers these days! But I'll look again.

Perhaps unhelpful but insightful (I was involved in insurance many years ago), brokers may just not want to spend the time.

Comparison sites have taken a chunk of their business, people like Martin Lewis say don't pay anyone a broker a fee ever, and so they survive on a commission based on a % of the premium, which understandably customers want to be as low as possible. On something like this a broker may not want to spend a long time searching to get you a £200 premium to earn a net £20 out of it. It's just the way it is unfortunately.

[alscar]

scotshaggis said:

Seemingly last years policy documents said it was removed. I believe just because they'd stopped offering cover for anything separate being the gist. As you say a separate title probably isn't a great issue.

There are so few brokers these days! But I'll look again. A few years ago I was going to rent someone a separate lock up I have within a group of lock up garages. She started fussing about whether I had it insured or not. I didn't. I tried then to find a policy thinking it ought not to be particularly costly to take out a buildings policy. Wrong. It too was difficult, and was not cheap. I think I got a quote from a broker of around £650. Crazy when you can insure a home and £50000 of contents for half of that.

I'd take out a separate policy for this garage I'm concerned about but there just doesn't seem to be anything easy to locate, which seems extraordinary,

Edited by scotshaggis on Wednesday 8th July 09:26

Edited by scotshaggis on Wednesday 8th July 09:26

Unfortunately it will be down to the actuaries that drive underwriting theses days and based on the stats they hold that drives the premium.
As replied to already, minimum premiums for brokers may also play a part although most on the panels hold what called delegated authority and would batch risks written monthly for accounting purposes so that should be less of an issue perhaps.
Ideally you want to find a local broker that isn't that big but has been round a while so has that Insurer access.

[scotshaggis]

Neil-nvaua said:

Perhaps unhelpful but insightful (I was involved in insurance many years ago), brokers may just not want to spend the time.

Comparison sites have taken a chunk of their business, people like Martin Lewis say don't pay anyone a broker a fee ever, and so they survive on a commission based on a % of the premium, which understandably customers want to be as low as possible. On something like this a broker may not want to spend a long time searching to get you a £200 premium to earn a net £20 out of it. It's just the way it is unfortunately.

I'm still hoping to insure my home too. I have another broker who organises a commercial insurance for me looking at it but it doesn't seem like he's having any great success.

Adrian Flux can do home insurance. I had high hopes for them on Monday. No luck. Transferred me to another company/broker. Sounded promising. No reply came back.

This is not for want of trying as anyone can see from my efforts! Hence posting here hoping for any good pointers.

[scotshaggis]

alscar said:

Ideally you want to find a local broker that isn't that big but has been round a while so has that Insurer access.

I might try the local one again today I know of. Thanks

[Ussrcossack]

NFU Mutual?

[alscar]

scotshaggis said:

I might try the local one again today I know of. Thanks

Try Quote Monkey - yes I know odd name but their website seems tailor made for you.

[scotshaggis]

Thanks I'll try those.

Just stonewalled just now by two brokers

[Mr Pointy]

Ussrcossack said:

NFU Mutual?

I was going to suggest them but it won't be cheap - even for the house.

[OutInTheShed]

We sold our lock-up some years ago, one of the reasons was the cost of insurance.
There are a few specialist insurers who will do blocks of lock-ups for landlords.
We were paying over a hundred quid back then, and it didn't really cover much other than public liability.

It's much more economic sense to insure a block of garages as one unit, but obviously there would be issues if one owner wanted to claim off another.

Is the garage on a different 'title' with the land registry?

[scotshaggis]

Yes, I mentioned above a different title. The situation is a mews style street where I have a garage two doors down as well as garaging under the house.