This article was first published on the Total Landlord Insurance website.
The high winds seen in much of the UK recently as the country caught the tail end of Hurricane Katia has highlighted the need for landlord buildings insurance to fund the cost of repairing damage caused by the weather.
Winds hit 80mph in parts of Britain on Monday (September 12th), with the North and West regions among the worst hit as the storm crossed the Atlantic.
The Daily Express reports that the British Association of Insurers has estimated that the damage to property caused by the hurricane could run into “tens of millions of pounds”.
This could motivate those without adequate landlord housing insurance that escaped the worst of the storm to seek comprehensive cover, as they might not be so lucky next time.
However, there are a number of additional steps that landlords and private homeowners can take to help minimise the effects of bad weather on their property.
Santander has published a number of tips to help property owners prepare for storms.
These include general maintenance tasks, such as regularly checking for loose tiles, corroded nails and weak mortar joints on roofs, crumbling brickwork on chimneys or leaning roof stacks and overgrown trees near the property.
Immediately before a storm, lose objects such as garden furniture should be secured, said the bank, all doors and windows should be fastened securely and drainpipes and guttering should be properly attached to the property.
After the storm has passed check for fallen debris around the building and look for loose tiles or slates still on the roof.
Flood damage could be another potential source of weather related property damage for landlords, with a recent report from the adaptation Sub-Committee, part of the Committee on Climate Change, warning that more needs to be done to protect buildings from the increased threat of flooding brought on by climate change.
Posted by Heather Thomas
