Park Homes which are sometimes referred to as Mobile Homes are main residences occupied by about 85,000 people in the UK live in mobile homes.
That’s when park home insurance comes in useful. With the same perks of insuring a traditional home and additional policies in place, you can live in your mobile home with increased peace of mind.
In this article, we’ll let you know the basics of park home insurance. You will learn more about what its policies have to offer, as well as expenses, claims, and where it’s best to get your quote. Read on to find out what you need to know when living in a park home.
What is park home insurance?
Park home insurance cover is a specialist insurance designed for your mobile home and its contents. Mobile homes are usually located on in residential parks, this type of insurance protects your home and contents.
What does park home insurance cover?
What your park home insurance covers depends on the policies you get. There is no point paying extra for some policies that are not suited to your park home’s needs.
So, you can get a basic cover and add any policies you need. A fully comprehensive policy will usually cover damages, whether caused by a third party or accidents. You can also benefit from 24/7 emergency repair, cover for personal claims, and cover for floods. Any usual legal expenses such as disputes between yourself and your park owner are covered too.
What park home insurance policy should you get?
The type of park home insurance policy you get will depend on your specific needs. It’s helpful to speak to an insurance broker. They can make the process easier for you, reduce costs, and phone insurance companies on your behalf.
But, apart from your residential park home insurance policy, you might want to get park home car insurance. Some park home insurance providers will offer you a premium package that features a park home car insurance cover. Just make sure to ask for this when you contact your insurance broker or provider.
What other policies can you get?
You can get a park home insurance policy for any of your particular needs. But most of them are universal to most insurance providers.
Here are some park home cover policies you can get:
- Excess protection
- Key protection
- Homecare emergency
- Legal protection
- Damage protection
Excess protection
The excess protection policy will refund any money you pay if you make a claim. Usually, you’d pay for claims as agreed when setting up the policy.
Key protection
Losing or breaking keys happens. Most of us are guilty of losing keys, especially when thieves target them hoping to leave with a new vehicle. Since key replacements and repairs can be expensive, this cover will pay for the costs.
Homecare emergency
A homecare emergency cover will have you protected if you need any emergency repairs. It includes 24/7 service. A professional tradesperson or engineer can come and carry out an emergency repair if required. The policy can cover:
- Plumbing and drainage
- Heating system
- Roofing
- Internal electricity
- Pest infestation
- Boiler replacements
Most policies include replacements park homes too if you are insured on a new for old basis. If your park home gets damaged beyond economic repair, you can benefit from a replacement. You can get either an equivalent or brand new model.
This policy also includes your park home’s contents but is usually capped to a set sum. You should check with your provider or broker for details.
Legal protection
Legal protection, often in the form of public liability, is an insurance policy designed to offer you peace of mind in the case of a legal dispute. Legal protection primarily applies to the costs of you going to court.
If someone pursues legal action against you, your insurance covers your legal expenses. You might be taken to court by a third party if your park home allegedly injures them or causes damage to their property.
The legal protection cover also applies to any legal disputes with site owners. If you notice an unarranged rent increase followed by eviction threats, you don’t have to pay for the legal process. That’s the case for most disputes with your park owner.
Legal protection also covers other expenses, like employment disputes, fraud cases, and personal injury. Always make sure to discuss what your policy covers with your provider or broker. And get the best policies for your needs.
Damage protection
There are many different policies you can get if your motor home gets damaged. Your repairs, replacements, and other such expenses will be paid for by damage protection.
You can get a damage protection policy as:
- Unintentional damage (accidents) cover
- Earthquake cover
- Escaping water or oil from tanks or pipes cover
- Explosion cover
- Falling Trees or branches cover
- Fire cover
- Impact cover
- Lightning or thunderbolt cover
- Riot or civil commotion cover
- Smoke cover
- Storm or flood cover
- Subsidence of the buildings stand or landslip site cover
- Subterranean fire cover
- Theft or attempted theft cover
- Vandalism cover
Can you get accommodation cover if your home is severely damaged?
If your motor home gets damaged to the point you can’t live in it, you can benefit from alternative accommodation cover. Many insurance companies offer this. Yet, you might have to pay an additional fee to get this policy.
How much is park home insurance?
While residential park home insurance costs differ from case to case, the average fee for one year usually is less than £200.
This sum can go up or down depending on a few factors. These include where your park home is, what its size is, and how old it is.
For an accurate quote, you should contact an insurance broker or an insurance provider. They will be able to tell you precisely what fees apply to your circumstances.
Can you pay in instalments for your park home insurance policy?
If the fees for 12 months of park home insurance are slightly out of your budget, you can pay in monthly instalments instead. It entirely depends on your insurance provider, but most on the market will allow monthly payments.
If you prefer the convenience of monthly payments over a grand, all-in investment, you should think about this carefully. It can end up being more expensive than paying it all at once.
Can you insure more than one park home at once?
You can sometimes insure multiple park homes under the same policy, but you should check this with an insurance provider or insurance broker. They can give you more information on whether the available park home insurance policies can cover two park homes.
Are there any exclusions for park home covers?
Most insurance policies will have exclusions, and that includes park home insurance covers. Some of the standard exclusions you can expect are:
- Damage caused by smoking
- General wear and tear
- Pet damage
- Damage to Gates & Fences
- Others
General wear and tear
Everything gets worn and torn in time, including your home. So your insurance provider won’t cover any natural damage that happens over time.
Unoccupied home theft
If you leave your park home unprotected for a set period of time, it often won’t be covered by your insurance policy. This unoccupancy exclusion applies if you don’t stay in your park home for more than the period specified in your policy. You need to check how many days you have cover for with your provider, before their unoccupany terms, clauses and cover exclusions apply.
You should always check for exclusions with your insurance provider or the broker helping you arrange your park home insurance. Some policies may not have them, but it’s best to stay on the safe side.
Pet damage
Like for many home insurance policies, damages caused by pets do not get covered. The damage can be either to your park home or its contents. If your pets are particularly naughty, you might want to look into this as a separate policy.
Others
There are many other exceptions. You’ll find that each insurance provider will have its own, so you should always double-check with them or your insurance broker. Other exclusions include faulty workmanship and damages caused by electrical or mechanical breakdowns.
How can you get a low quote for your park home insurance?
If you are trying to get a lower quote for your park home insurance, there are some things you can do to help:
- Use an insurance broker
- Maintain your park home
- Use environmentally friendly park homes
- Replace old park homes
And this is why you should do these things:
Use an insurance broker
You can benefit from their discounts and claims service. Their relationship with insurance providers gives them trust and makes them get premiums for all their customers.
Maintain your park home
Make sure you schedule checks and maintenance for your park home. It should be in prime condition to make insurance providers more inclined to give you better rates.
Use environmentally friendly park homes
If you reduce your carbon output and opt for more sustainable park homes, you can get better prices for your insurance. Environmentally friendly homes sometimes get assessed more favourably.
Replace old park homes
We don’t mean a park home that’s just a little bit old. That will be fine. But, you should know that newer park homes will get evaluated more positively too. They tend to be more environmentally friendly.
If your park home is very old, a replacement will get you more affordable insurance policies for reasons you might suspect already. Newer homes last longer and won’t have as many issues as older ones.
Park home insurance FAQs
We have put together a section to answer your frequently asked questions. For any other enquiries, you should call us at 01527 881010.
Is park home insurance the same as a bricks and mortar insurance?
A park home and a bricks and mortar property have very different needs. If you choose a bricks and mortar insurance, you might find yourself uncovered for specific things that a park home insurance policy can cover.
Why choose an insurance broker to help with your park home insurance?
If you want to get specialised park home insurance services, you are better off going to specialists. While an online comparison service can give you a brief outlook, it can never have enough depth going into policies.
On top of that, insurance brokers are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). These regulations guarantee an informative, qualitative, and helpful service.
Here at A-Plan, we have qualified, specialists consultants that are there to help you. From getting the right policies for you to claiming on your behalf, we can handle the whole process.
Options
Insurance brokers can guide you through your options so that you can choose the best cover for your specific needs. Comparison websites don’t give you a personal experience. You can only receive so many quotes, options, and providers to decide. You would be missing out on specialist tips and expertise if using a website.
Expertise
Insurance brokers have a high degree of knowledge of any insurance, including mobile home covers. You wouldn’t want to pay twice for the same service by getting two similar policies by accident. Insurance brokers leave room for no error, so you can put your mind at ease while they handle the paperwork.
Discounts
The relationships insurance brokers form with insurance providers is priceless. It earns you discounts and gets you the best premiums available. With the help of your insurance broker, you can get the best price quotes for many insurance companies.
Summary
Now you know everything you need to know about park home insurance. With this in mind, you should also always cover all your bases when it comes to your insurance. Exclusions are easy to overlook in the process. But, as long as you get a policy that covers all your needs, your park home insurance can come in very helpful.