Student property insurance Student property insurance

Landlord insurance for student houses, shared homes and student lets. Get cover for property damage, contents, fixtures and fittings and property owners’ liability insurance as standard. Add optional cover for rental income and more.

Be quote confident. We'll beat the price of any like-for-like quote. T&Cs apply.

Why should landlords renting to students consider insurance?

Student rental properties can come with different risks from standard buy-to-let homes. More tenants, shared spaces and furnished rooms can mean more wear, damage and admin for landlords.

Landlord insurance bought through Superscript can cover student houses, including properties with a single joint tenancy agreement or up to five separate tenancy agreements.

It can include:

  • Buildings insurance, fixtures and fittings cover, and property owners’ liability insurance as standard
  • Cover for malicious damage by tenants
  • Optional cover for loss of rent, employers’ liability, terrorism and more
  • Savings of up to 17.5% when you insure multiple properties online
  • Policy changes with no admin fees
  • Monthly or annual payment options

Be quote confident

We're big on fairness. So if you find a lower price for a comparable quote, we won't just match it – we'll aim to beat it.

So even better than apples to apples, apples to better apples. We're talking Galas to Braeburns.

As you'd expect, T&Cs apply.

What does landlord insurance for student houses cover?

Student landlord insurance bought through Superscript comes with two core covers: property damage and property owners’ liability. You can add optional covers depending on what you want included in your policy.

Property damage, including fixtures, fittings and contents

Property damage is included as standard. It can cover your building, landlord’s fixtures and fittings and contents if they're damaged by things like:

  • Fire, lightning or an explosion
  • Storms or floods
  • Water leaking from pipes, tanks or drains
  • Someone breaking in or trying to break in
  • Someone deliberately damaging the property
  • Riots
  • Vehicles or animals hitting the property

Fixtures and fittings are things that form part of your rental property, like kitchen units or bathroom suites. Contents are items belonging to you as the landlord, like furniture, carpets and white goods. Both can be covered when they're damaged by something included in your policy.

This policy can cover some of the costs that come with the damage too. And if it means your tenants can't live in the property, some alternative accommodation costs can also be covered.

You can also choose to include accidental damage or subsidence, ground heave or landslip. This is where the ground beneath or around the building moves.

Landlords to student tenants have a £2,500 excess for malicious damage. Your excess is what you have to pay, or what is deducted from your settlement, before a claim you make can be paid out.

Property owners' liability

If a tenant, visitor or someone else is accidentally injured, or their property is damaged, you could be held responsible as the property owner. Property owners’ liability is designed to cover the compensation and legal costs you might have to pay.

It also includes certain legal defence costs, including some costs if you’re prosecuted under health and safety laws. The maximum amount covered is shown in your policy schedule.

Optional student landlord covers

You can also add extra cover, depending on your property, tenants and requirements.

Loss of rent insurance

If damage to your rental property means you lose rental income, loss of rent can cover that missing income.

You can choose to cover lost rent for between one and five years.

It can also cover lost rent in some other specific situations, including certain cases where damage nearby stops people accessing the property, or damage interrupts its water, gas, electricity or telecommunications supply.

This doesn’t cover rent lost because a tenant doesn’t pay you. If you'd like cover for rent if a tenant stops paying, choose rent guarantee insurance below.

Rental guarantee and legal protection insurance

Add rent guarantee and legal protection to your residential landlords' insurance to help protect your rental income if tenants stop paying rent.

Cover can also help with legal expenses linked to repossession proceedings, tenancy disputes and rent recovery.

Landlords’ home emergency cover

Add landlords’ home emergency cover to your residential landlord insurance for support when something urgent happens at your rental property.

It can help with emergency call-outs, temporary repairs and tenant accommodation after sudden problems like boiler breakdowns, plumbing failures, power issues, roof leaks or pest infestations.

You can’t add this cover online just yet, but our Customer Success Team can help. Give us a call on 0330 058 3473 or email hello@gosuperscript.com, and we’ll get you sorted.

Employers' liability

If you employ staff to help manage your properties — like maintenance workers, administrators or cleaners — you may be legally required to have employers’ liability insurance.

This cover can help with legal costs and compensation claims if an employee becomes ill or injured because of their work.

Terrorism

You can add terrorism cover for damage or loss to your insured property caused by an act of terrorism. It can also cover rental income you lose as a result.

What isn't covered by student landlords' insurance?

There are some things residential landlord insurance doesn't cover. Here are a few important examples:

  • Wear and tear: things wearing out or getting worse over time aren't covered. This includes rust, corrosion, damp, wet or dry rot
  • Some damage while your property is empty: different rules apply once a property is classed as unoccupied. This can mean things like storm, flood, theft, deliberate damage and burst pipes aren't covered
  • Poor workmanship or faulty materials: damage caused by faulty design, poor workmanship or faulty materials isn't covered
  • Asbestos: property owners’ liability doesn't cover injury or damage caused by exposure to asbestos
  • Some losses under terrorism: optional terrorism cover doesn't include digital or cyber risks. Other exclusions also apply

Once you've completed a quote, you'll be able to view a summary of cover. Please always refer to your policy documents for full details around exclusions, terms and limits of your customised cover. Read our guide to understanding your policy documents.

Save when you insure multiple properties

If you insure multiple residential properties under one policy, you could save up to 17.5%.

You can insure up to 10 residential properties under one policy, including a mix of student houses and standard buy-to-let properties.

You can also choose different optional covers for different properties, so you only pay for what each property needs.

What if my property isn't student accommodation?

At Superscript, we can cover all sorts of landlords, including:

If you are looking to insure a house in multiple occupation (HMO), commercial properties or mixed-use buildings, you’ll need to speak to one of our friendly Customer Success Team who can help. Just give us a call on 0330 058 3473 or drop us an email at hello@gosuperscript.com.

Do you need an HMO licence for student properties?

Not always. A student property may need an HMO licence depending on how many people live there and the licensing rules in your area.

In England, an HMO with five or more people from two or more households generally needs a mandatory HMO licence. Some councils also require smaller HMOs, including student houses with three or four tenants, to be licensed.

Check with your local authority to find out which rules apply to your property.

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How do insurance claims work?

Here’s a good guide to the process and timescales you can expect when you need to make a claim under your policy.

If you’re ever unsure whether you can or should claim, it’s best to get in touch, and we can let you know.

1

Notify us of the claim

Contact us by email at claims@gosuperscript.com, by 24/7 freephone on 0800 772 3059 or by logging in to your customer portal.

Ideally, this should be done as soon as possible and within 30 days of you becoming aware of anything which you think may be covered by your insurance.

A good indicator of whether or not to let us know is if there’s an issue which may require a payment to be made on your behalf.

2

We'll get on the case

We’ll acknowledge your claim within 24 hours, and sometimes in as little as 30 minutes! This means you’ll receive email confirmation of your claim reference and contact information should you need to speak to us.

We will then reach out to you within 48 hours to request any extra information we need to progress your claim.

We’ll keep you updated on the next steps as the claim progresses.

3

A decision is made

We’ll let you know if your claim is successful or not. If your claim isn’t covered, we will always try to point you in the right direction and support you as best we can in getting back to normal.

Read about the most common reasons claims aren't paid.

If your claim is successful, once we have all the documents we need, we will aim to settle claims like accidental damage, theft and lost equipment within five working days.

Landlord insurance for student houses FAQs

How much does residential landlord insurance cost?

The price of your policy could vary depending on several factors, including:

  • How many properties are covered
  • The location of your property
  • The number of joint or separate tenancy agreements
  • The value of your contents
  • The rebuild cost of your property

Read our guide on what affects the cost of your insurance policy. The quickest way to find out how much your policy would cost is to start a quote.

Is landlord insurance required for landlords of student properties?

Landlord insurance is not a legal requirement in the UK.

However, many landlords choose specialist student landlord insurance because shared student homes can come with different risks from standard rental properties.

If you have a mortgage, your lender may also require buildings insurance.

What types of student properties can be covered?

Landlord insurance for student lets bought through Superscript can cover student apartments, flats and houses.

This can include properties with one joint tenancy agreement or up to five separate tenancy agreements.

Can I get landlord insurance if my student property is temporarily unoccupied?

If your residential property is empty or doesn’t have a tenant for more than 45 days, we’ll treat it as unoccupied.

In this case, you’ll need to let us know. Your cover may change while the property is unoccupied, and you’ll need to take some extra steps, like checking it every week and keeping it secure.

If you already have a signed tenancy or lease when your policy starts, different rules can apply. Check your policy documents for the full details.

What excess will I pay?

The excess is the amount you agreed to pay, or have deducted, when you took out your policy. It applies when you make a claim. Most policies have a compulsory excess, which will be due on every claim you make.

Your exact excess will depend on the policy you’ve taken out and will be shown in your policy documents.

Can I insure multiple student properties?

Yes, you can insure up to 10 residential properties under one policy bought online.

This can include a mix of student houses and standard rental properties, with a multi-property saving of up to 17.5% if you buy your cover online.

Can I change or cancel my policy?

Yes. You can make changes to your policy at any time without admin fees.

You can also cancel at any time without notice; however, you’ll be charged a cancellation fee if you cancel before your policy term has ended.

Am I covered in the event of a terrorist incident?

Standard landlord insurance usually excludes terrorism.

You can add terrorism cover to help cover repair costs, certain financial losses and property owners’ liability claims linked to acts of terrorism.

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Individual cover purchased online is offered on a standardised, non-advised basis and is not bespoke. Terms, conditions and coverage limits are predetermined by the Underwriter. If you require bespoke coverage offered on an advised basis, please contact our in-house broking team.

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