Tenants fail to insure their personal items due to the cost of living crisis 

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Cutting back on a household essential: Nearly half of tenants haven’t bothered with contents insurance driven by the cost of living crisis

  • Nearly half of tenants have not insured their belongings in a bid to save money
  • A fifth of tenants mistakenly believe their landlord’s insurer covers them

By Myra Butterworth For MailOnline

Published: | Updated:

Nearly half of tenants have not insured personal belongings in a bid to save money amid the cost of living crisis.

A total of 48 per cent have no contents insurance, with 44 per cent adopting this approach to save cash, new research by Compare the Market shows. 

The research was carried out as many households across Britain feel the squeeze financially due to significant rises in energy, food and fuel costs.

Tenant shun: Out of those who haven’t insured personal belongings, 44% say it’s to save money

But by cutting back on insurance, tenants potentially face even greater financial pressure if they end up needing to replace or repair stolen, lost or damaged possessions.

The research also found that 32 per cent of tenants say that they are less willing to take out home contents insurance due to the rising cost-of-living.

More than half – at 54 per cent – who have previously had items lost, damaged or stolen say that the value of their impacted possessions is at least £200.

For more than one in five – at 22 per cent – this figure rises to at least £500 worth of items.

A total of 2,003 adults were surveyed between April 19 and April 21 by the comparison website.

Nearly a fifth of tenants have no contents insurance as they mistakenly believe that their landlord's home insurance policy covers their personal possessions

Nearly a fifth of tenants have no contents insurance as they mistakenly believe that their landlord’s home insurance policy covers their personal possessions

Home contents insurance differs from landlord home insurance, which covers the building itself, necessary repairs, as well as the landlord’s own contents.

Nearly a fifth – at 18 per cent – of tenants have no contents insurance because they mistakenly believe that their landlord’s home insurance policy covers their personal possessions, such as their mobile phone, tablet, wallet and bicycle.

Tenants are responsible for having their own contents insurance policy for personal items.

Alex Hasty, of Compare the Market, said: ‘The ongoing cost-of-living crisis is placing a substantial strain on many people’s finances. 

‘As a result, many renters are having to cut back not only on certain luxuries, such as dining out, but also on critical expenses, like contents insurance, to help relieve the burden of soaring living costs.

‘As household bills and inflation continue to rise, we understand that people will be looking to cut back on expenditure during this difficult time. 

‘However, not having cover on personal possessions within your rental property could be costly, should these items unfortunately be misplaced, stolen or damaged.’

WAYS FOR TENANTS TO SAVE 

Here are some of the ways in which tenants can save money by not forking out for unnecessary expenditure.

Furniture 

If any furniture and upholstery in the rental property fails to meet certain standards, make sure that the landlord pays for replacements that do.

This includes every piece of furniture, which must be fire-resistant or treated with fire retardant coatings. 

This should be detailed on the manufacturer’s label, which legally must be attached to the item. 

If the label has been removed or does not indicate that the furniture is fire-resistant, the landlord is legally obliged to remove or replace the item.

Inventory 

On renting a property, the landlord should provide you with an inventory of items that is included.

It needs to list all of the furniture and appliances in the property, with notes on their condition.

Existing marks and damage to items that were there before the start of the tenancy may be missing from the list. If this is the case, it is important that they are added – otherwise you could end up being charged for them when you move out as there will be no proof that the damage was there before you moved in.

Gas and electricity 

It is also important for tenants to understand their rights when it comes to electricity suppliers.

If a tenant pays for the energy that they use, it is their right to choose the gas or electricity provider. During that process. tenants can negotiate the best price from suppliers.

Repairs 

Don’t pay for something that isn’t a tenant’s responsibility to fix.  

Generally speaking, a landlord is responsible for repairing most appliances that come with a property, as well as permanent elements of the property.

 This includes the roof, drains, windows and doors, as well as appliances such as gas pipes, wiring, boilers, radiators and fitted heaters.

There may be more details on this in the tenancy agreement.