House insurance for an empty property most often becomes urgent after a death, at the point when somebody realises the house has been empty for weeks and nobody has told the insurer. Probate is the single commonest reason a house stands empty in this country, and it produces two problems at once: the policy is in the wrong name and the property has passed its unoccupancy period.
Whose name the policy should be in
On death the property forms part of the estate, and the people with an insurable interest are the personal representatives, the executors named in the will or the administrators appointed where there is none. The existing policy should be told about the death and, where the insurer agrees, continued in the executors' names. Leaving it in the deceased's name is common, and it is the kind of thing that becomes an argument rather than a formality when a claim arrives.
Telling the insurer, and what they usually do
Some household insurers will continue cover for a limited period after a death, often thirty to ninety days, on standard terms. Beyond that most want either an endorsement or for the property to move to unoccupied cover. Either way the conversation is short and the alternative, saying nothing and hoping probate completes quickly, is how a house ends up uninsured for the months that probate actually takes.
The conditions that apply to a probate property
The same ones as any empty house: inspections at intervals with a record, heating maintained or the system drained, post cleared, valuables removed, locks to a specification. Executors dealing with the estate from another part of the country should arrange somebody local to do the visits, because the inspection condition is the one most often breached in exactly this situation.
Contents, and what happens to them
A deceased person's contents are usually still in the house and are usually the thing family wants to deal with last. Most unoccupied policies limit or exclude contents, and almost all exclude valuables in an empty property. Removing the items that matter, or at least recording and photographing them, is worth doing early rather than after a break in.
Questions people ask about house insurance for empty property
Who insures a house during probate?
The personal representatives, the executors or administrators of the estate. The policy should be put into their names and the insurer told about the death.
How long will an insurer keep cover after a death?
Often thirty to ninety days on standard terms, sometimes longer by agreement. After that, unoccupied cover is usually needed because probate rarely completes that quickly.
Are the contents covered?
Usually on limited terms and often with valuables excluded. Remove or record the items that matter rather than relying on the policy.
What if the house is being sold as part of the estate?
It still needs insuring until completion, and a short term unoccupied policy with a pro rata refund suits a sale that may complete quickly.