Unfortunately, we have just had to deal with a fire in one of the properties we manage. It is worth sounding some words of caution with regard to the incident. 

Insurance policy clauses

The first is insurance. Before paying out on the insurance claim, the insurance company contacted us and requested a copy of the latest inspection report. 

The owner’s policy stated:

You or your agent must [complete] …. an internal and external inspection of your home at a minimum of 3 monthly intervals, and upon change of tenants, and keep a written record of each inspection.

Different insurance companies and policies may have slightly different time frame requirements for inspections, but they all require inspections to be carried out regularly. At Nightingales, our policy is to carry out inspections every 3 months. After the fire, we were able to provide the required documentation and ensure that the owner would receive the insurance payout on the property.

Do you know what your insurance policy says?

Do you know the specific details of your policy, i.e. have you read the small print? It is your responsibility to advise us if your policy requires us to do something different to our standard practices e.g. more frequent inspections. We recommend that even if you think you know what the contents of your policy are, check again just to ensure that nothing has changed.