Unoccupied house insurance is printed from £14.25 a month by Simply Business and from £35.00 a month by the broker Premier Insurance, while a landlord policy such as Hiscox's carries 90 days of unoccupied cover between tenancies before a specialist policy is needed. Insurance for an unoccupied house is a different purchase from insuring the same house with somebody in it, and the change happens on a date rather than a decision. Every buildings policy counts consecutive days with nobody living there, and after the number in the wording the cover narrows without anything visibly changing. The practical job is to notice the date before it passes and to buy the right product for the reason the house is empty.
Unoccupied house insurance comparison, on the prices printed
Three published positions frame an unoccupied house insurance comparison. Simply Business prints unoccupied property cover from £14.25 a month: 10% of its customers paid £170.96 a year or less between 1 January and 30 June 2026, for buildings and £2m of property owners' liability only, and its worked example is £29.70 a month (£356.36 a year) for a three bedroom end of terrace house in Staffordshire left unoccupied for its first 50 days. Premier Insurance, a broker, prints an indicative minimum of £35.00 a month and notes that most standard policies restrict cover after 30 to 60 days empty. Hiscox includes 90 days of unoccupied cover between tenancies in its landlord policy, which can be the cheaper answer when the gap is short. Two specialist prices only compare once the perils given up, the excess and the inspection conditions are set side by side.
Buildings insurance for empty property: find the date first
The unoccupancy clause is usually under general conditions or exclusions and states a number of consecutive days, commonly thirty, forty five or sixty. Count from the day the last person moved out rather than from the day you noticed. That date is the deadline for telling the insurer, and telling them a week early costs nothing while telling them a week late can cost the claim. On home insurance, an unoccupied house is a change of risk the insurer has to be told about.
Decide which kind of empty this is
A house waiting for probate, a house between tenancies, a house for sale, a house being renovated and a house whose owner is in hospital are five different underwriting problems with different answers. Probate needs the policy in the right names. Renovation beyond decoration needs a works policy. A short gap between tenants may just need an endorsement. Say which it is, because the insurer will write a different contract for each.
What the specialist policy gives you and what it takes
You get cover for a building nobody is watching, usually in a three, six or twelve month term. You give up some perils, commonly escape of water at a full limit, theft and accidental damage, or accept them at a higher excess. You take on conditions: inspections at stated intervals with a record, heating on at a minimum temperature or the water drained, post cleared, locks to a specification. Unoccupied house insurance cover is narrower than occupied cover for that reason, and an unoccupied house insurance comparison has to read the peril list and the conditions rather than only the price.
The things that actually cause the claim
Water first, by a long way: a joint fails in an unheated house and runs for a fortnight. Then theft of metal, boilers and anything not fixed down. Then damage from a break in, and in some areas arson in a house that visibly looks empty. Each of those is exactly what the conditions are aimed at, which is why the conditions are the policy rather than the small print.
Questions people ask about insurance for unoccupied house
How long can a house be left empty before the insurance changes?
Commonly thirty to sixty consecutive days, and the exact figure is in your wording. After that, cover narrows to a short list of perils unless the insurer has agreed otherwise in writing.
How much does house insurance for an empty property cost in the UK?
Simply Business prints unoccupied property cover from £14.25 a month and the broker Premier Insurance from £35.00 a month. Those are starting prices rather than an average cost, and an empty house usually costs more to insure than an occupied one because nobody is there to notice a leak or deter a thief. Short terms keep the total down.
Do I have to inspect the house myself?
Somebody responsible does, at the interval the policy states, with a written record. Where nobody is local, a managed inspection service costs far less than the claim it protects.
What if the house is being renovated?
Renovation beyond minor decoration needs a policy written for works in progress, and the contractor should carry their own cover. Tell the insurer the scope before work starts.
Does home insurance cover an empty house?
Only up to the number of consecutive empty days in your wording, commonly thirty to sixty. After that, cover narrows to a short list of perils unless the insurer has agreed otherwise, so tell the insurer before the date passes.
How should I compare empty house insurance quotes?
Set the perils given up, the excess and the inspection conditions side by side before the price. A cheaper quote that drops escape of water or theft, or demands weekly inspections you cannot make, is not the same product as a dearer one that keeps them.
Sources
- Association of British Insurers: subsidence
- GOV.UK: council tax on empty and second homes
- Hiscox UK: landlord insurance
- Simply Business: unoccupied property insurance (retrieved 2026-10-22)
- Premier Insurance: unoccupied property insurance (retrieved 2026-10-22)
- Hiscox UK: landlords insurance, unoccupied cover between tenancies (retrieved 2026-10-12)