Whether you own a grand manor in the heart of the countryside or a Georgian townhouse in a city, living in a listed home means you need to think carefully about getting it insured. As listed properties tend to have some kind of architectural or historical importance attached to them, a standard home insurance policy will not provide you with sufficient protection.
The prestige that comes with such properties means you’ll need to obtain listed house insurance. Although this cover does tend to be more expensive than a normal home insurance policy, the extra financial cost that it incurs and the protection it gives will prove worthwhile in the event that you need to make a claim.
There are more than 350,000 listed properties in England alone and, with many of these built before 1840, there’s a good chance that anything constructed in the 17th-century that has at least some of its original structure and features intact is likely to be accredited with special status.
So what does this mean? Given their historical significance, such properties have to be maintained in a certain way and – unlike unlisted homes – you can’t always make improvements and repairs to them as and when you like.
If you are hoping to make substantial changes to your property, such as adding an extension, fitting an en-suite bathroom or upgrading your windows, you will first need to obtain permission from your local authority before any work can begin. In the event that the building is accidentally damaged, perhaps by a flood or fire, you’ll be legally obliged to restore it back to its original state.
As this is likely to require specialist craftsmanship and materials, it can be expensive to meet such costs from your own pocket, so as listed home insurance will help to cover these expenses, it really is a useful resource for you to call on. You could even find some insurers will recommend firms that specialise in repairing listed buildings.
Although you may be tempted to use modern construction materials and hire non-specialist craftsmen to do this work as a means of saving time and money, it is not worth considering. Not only could you be violating the terms of your policy (damage by DIY isn’t always covered), but there’s also a chance you could even end up reducing the value of the property.
Given the specialist materials and skills that carrying out repairs to listed buildings requires, this work can take longer to complete than first expected and cause greater disruption to your day-to-day life. As such, it is a good idea to find out if the listed building policy you’re thinking of getting will include provision for alternative accommodation for you to stay in while it is being done.
Depending on the policy you get, you might also be able to insure against any pre-existing changes that you discover have been carried out by the property’s previous owners without your local council’s approval. Amending these unlawful modifications is not only likely to lengthen the amount of time it takes for your property to be fixed, but also leave you with a more expensive repair bill. However, the majority of listed buildings policies come with a safety margin included, a feature designed to give you an element of protection in the event that the actual cost of rebuilding a home ends up exceeding the original estimate.
