This category is about all aspects of Holiday Home Letting and will be of interest to owners of holiday lets across the UK. As Holiday Home Insurance Specialists we are proud to share tips, guidance and articles.

Whether you own an individual holiday home or cottage or a holiday cottage complex our holiday home letting articles are for you. Subjects covered include taxation, online scams and regulations.

Check out these posts: Holiday Letting Terms and Conditions, Registration Schemes for Short Term Lets, Buying a Leasehold Apartment to Holiday Let, Holiday Lets and Tax – what you need to know.

Last chance for holiday home owners to comment on new holiday let rules

Last chance for holiday home owners to comment on new holiday let rules. New rules on furnished holiday lets will make it more difficult to let certain properties, reduce the number available and act as a barrier to new entrants to the industry. That is the verdict of a Westcountry expert on holiday lettings who is urging affected businesses to express their concerns to Government before consultation on the new rules ends next week (February 9).

John Endacott, tax partner at accountants Winter Rule in Truro and a prominent commentator on the issue of furnished holiday lets, said the revised rules would lead to significant changes in the industry.

They say that holiday lets must be available to let for 205 days in a year (up from 140) and actually let for 105 days in a year (up from 70), which could see more marginal properties in less popular areas fail to qualify. The Government is also tightening up on the ability to offset trading losses against profits, something which Mr Endacott said could deter new entrants to the industry trying to let properties with no letting record. He said: “I’ve no doubt that these new rules will result in consolidation in the industry because the lettings targets are going to be onerous for some owners and planning restrictions may actually prevent some properties from meeting the 210 day requirement.

“The new regime around trading losses is also very restrictive and means it will take a very long time to get tax relief on start-up losses. That will be a barrier to new entrants and high investment into single units does not look like a good business model.”

Mr Endacott said the new rules would probably lead to more owners with greater numbers of furnished holiday lets, but he was hopeful that owner-occupiers of holiday let complexes may be exempt. He added: “Winter Rule will be making further representations to the Government before next week’s deadline so if anyone wants to get in touch they can email me at taxcampaign@winterrule.co.uk.”

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Holiday Home Insurance Top Ten Blogs From 2010

Holiday Home Insurance Top Ten Blogs From 2010. Listed below are our top ten holiday home insurance blogs from 2010. Full of informative holiday home insurance tips and hints for furnished holiday let owners in the UK.

Brought to you by specialist Holiday Home Insurance broker Boshers Ltd.  

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Holiday Home Owners Are Warned To Be Prepared For The Thaw

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Holiday Home Owners Are Warned To Be Prepared For The Thaw. Winter 2010-11 already shows signs of being an unusually cold one throughout the UK. The Met Office forecasters are suggesting that the cold spell which began in November could persist well into January. After a decade or more of relatively mild conditions the sub-zero temperatures of the past three winters have taken some holiday home owners by surprise. As a result escape of water claims have spiralled for many insurers.

Mark Lavington, Director of Holiday Home Insurance specialists, Boshers Ltd offers his tips to help mitigate potential water damage this winter. Mark says: “The cost and personal inconvenience caused by a burst pipe claim can be considerable with claims often running into many thousands of pounds. Just a small fracture can release hundreds of gallons of water into your holiday home; damaging carpets, walls, ceilings, personal items as well as potentially rendering your let property uninhabitable until essential repairs and redecoration is carried out.”

The chance of suffering these losses can be reduced and Boshers recommend furnished holiday let owners taking the following steps to do this:

General tips:

  • Check the location of your stopcock.
  • Check whether your boiler needs servicing.
  • Check the insulation on your water pipes and cold water tank, those in the attic or other vulnerable spaces should be lagged or similarly protected.
  • Modern methods of insulation can be so effective in keeping heat within your property that attics can become very cold, this could cause a pipe to freeze. We therefore recommend you keep your loft hatch open if you have pipes in the attic to keep this area warm. Consider consulting your friendly plumber to see if your water and heating systems can be redesigned to negate the need to have pipes and header tanks in the attic.
  • Keep doors between heated and unheated rooms open to allow warm air to circulate.
  • Keep cupboard doors open below sinks to allow warm air to circulate around the plumbing.
  • Seal any holes or gaps that may be letting cold air into your property.
  • Make sure any valleys and gulley’s on your roof are kept clear and free from debris.
  • Make sure any external taps are turned off and disconnect any hoses.
  • If you discover a frozen pipe don’t wait for it to burst.

Turn off your water supply and then slowly thaw the affected pipe by introducing gentle heat to the area e.g. hair dryer, space heater, hot water bottle. DO NOT attempt to thaw the pipe with a blow torch or other open flame such as a cigarette lighter or matches.

What if the property will be unoccupied?

  • Keep your property heated to reduce the chance of a pipe freezing.
  • If unoccupied for an extended period drain and shut off your water system.
  • Ask somebody to check on your property daily. This may not prevent a loss but early identification of an escape can help reduce the ultimate cost.
  • Ensure you have complied with any unoccupancy conditions or warranties listed in your policy.

What if the worst happens?

  • Turn off the water supply at the stopcock. This should prevent any more water escaping into your property.
  • Where practical try and catch any excess water in a bucket or other container.
  • Do not use any electrics if you believe these may have been affected by the escaping water. You will need to have these checked by a professional electrician.

Additional guidance and holiday home insurance quotes are available from Boshers on 01237 429444 or for further information on UK holiday home insurance visit the website page most relevant to you:

 

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Home Owner – Winter hints and tips

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Home Owner – Winter hints and tips. Ecclesiastical Insurance have produced a useful aid for home owners titled Winter hints and tips.  Download your copy here and keep your homes safe from the worst of the weather.  

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Flood Advice

Flood Advice. As you may be aware a number of areas in Cornwall are currently affected by flooding. The Environment Agency has now issued a number of flood warnings in the South West & Wales. Ecclesiastical have issued guidance to those affected by todays flooding. For further information click here  

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Second Home Revival

Second Home Revival. A recent report by Knight Frank examines the growing demand for new-build holiday homes in the UK. The report highlights some interesting statistics such as in the three years up until the beginning of 2010, the growth in nights spent in self-catering apartments grew by 67% to 9.2m and the number of nights in self-catering houses, cottages and lodges grew 20% to 20.8m.

In terms of age groups the, the greatest growth in the tourist industry at present is accounted for by mature people in higher social groups. The trend towards staycations is becoming increasingly concentrated at the upper end of the market and is becoming spread more evenly throughout the year.

Read the rest of the report entitled Second Home Revival here….

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Electrical safety advice for furnished holiday let owners

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Electrical safety is a serious business – unsafe electrical installations cause around 31 deaths, over 8,000 house fires and 1,150 serious injuries each year*. What’s more, most accidents can be prevented.

In this post we explore the importance of electrical safety advice for furnished holiday let owners. Statistically, rented properties such as furnished holiday lets are more at risk than owner/occupier homes, as they tend to get more wear and tear. As a holiday home owner it is your responsibility under the law to make sure that the electrics in your property are safe. The quay to keeping your paying guests safe is simple. When employing someone to carry out electrical work in your properties always use an NICEIC registered contractor.

NICEIC acts as the UK electrical contracting industry’s voluntary regulatory body for electrical safety matters. They hold a register of more than 25,000 contractors who are independently assessed on an annual basis to ensure that they comply with national safety standards and codes of practice.

All NICEIC registered contractors have undergone appropriate training and assessment and are able to self-certify their electrical work in compliance with Part P of the Building Regulations. To find an NICEIC registered electrician in your area visit http://www.niceic.com/

You may also find the following posts for holiday home owners of interest:

Follow this link for other useful resources for holiday home owners

For further information on UK holiday home insurance visit the website page most relevant to you:

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Furnished Holiday Lettings – Tax Rule Changes April 2011 – CONSULTATION

HM Treasury in conjuction with HM Revenue & Customs have published a consultation document on proposed changes to the special tax rules for furnished holiday lettings. 

FHL Consultation

The consultaion is on proposals to ensure the tax rules for furnished holiday lettings are fully compliant with EU law and are better targeted at holiday letting businesses that are run commercial for profit rather than for personal use.

The proposals are to:

  • increase the minimum period over which a qualifying property is available to let to the public during a year from 140 to 210 days;
  • increase the minimum period over which a qualifying property is actually let to the public during a year from 70 days to 105 days;
  • restrict the use of loss relief from furnished holiday lettings so it can only be set against certain income from the same business;

The consultation seeks views on the impacts of these proposals, and is an opportunity to influence the details policy implemention.

The Furnished Holiday Lettings Consultation document is available to download here 

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How to find out your holiday home insurance rebuilding cost…

When taking out holiday home insurance buildings cover you will be asked for your holiday home’s rebuild cost and this amount will decide how much you need to insure the property for.

There are two main ways to find your home’s rebuild cost; hire a surveyor or or use a rebuild calculator. Read more here: Is Your Holiday Home Properly Insured ? 

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Furnished Holiday Let Owners Are Warned That Gas And Cowboys Don’t Mix

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Holiday Home Owners are considered as Landlords under HSE legislation and therefore have specific legal responsibilities to their guests (tenants) when it comes to gas safety. In order to comply with the legislation all furnished holiday let owners should have all the gas appliances and gas boilers in their holiday homes serviced in accordance with the manufacturers guidelines and have a Gas Safety Check carried out. This work must be carried out by a Gas Safe Registered Business. Furnished Holiday Let Owners Are Warned That Gas And Cowboys Don’t Mix! Visit the Gas Safe Register website for specific gas safety information for landlords including a facility to search for a registered business in your area.

Furnished Holiday Let Owners Are Warned That Gas And Cowboys Don’t Mix

According to research carried out in 2009 on behalf of the Gas Safe Register at least a quarter of a million gas appliances installed in our homes each year are done illegally. At least 7,500 illegal gas fitters in GB are doing the most common and often most dangerous types of gas work in our homes.

Illegal gas workers who make false claims about their qualifications and carry out unsafe gas work could put you, your family and your guests at risk from gas leaks, fires, explosions and carbon monoxide poisoning. Owners who fail to use a Gas Safe Registered Businesss to carry out their statutory duty as a landlord to have annual Gas Safety Checks on their holiday home gas appliances could also invalidate their holiday home insurance.

Holiday home owners will also find the links below of interest:

For Self-Catering holiday cottage owners in Scotland, the Scottish Government has produced the following:

You may also find the following posts for holiday home owners of interest:

Follow this link for posts similar to Holiday Let Insurance for your annexe other useful resources for holiday home owners

For further information on UK holiday home insurance visit the website page most relevant to you:

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