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VisitEngland Tourism Accommodation and the Law

Tourism Accommodation and the Law

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VisitEngland Tourism Accommodation and the LawTourism Accommodation and the Law – A One Day Conference on Legislation Affecting Tourism Accommodation Businesses including self-catering holiday homes, cottages and apartments run as furnished holiday letting properties.

VisitEngland hosted the above conference in London on the 12th February 2013 to update attendees on recent and forthcoming legislation changes that affect tourism accommodation in England and no doubt also of interest to owners and operators across the rest of the UK. The conference was aimed at accommodation assessors, including National Quality Assessment Scheme franchises and local schemes, self-catering agents, destination managers, TIC managers, trade associations, tourism consultants and suppliers such as ourselves as specialist holiday home insurance advisers to the UK holiday letting market.

The day was split into two main sessions covering aspects of Tourism Accommodation and the Law, the morning one concerned with Rules and Regulations and the afternoon with Legal Duties and Responsibilities.

Rules and Regulations – in particular the topics covered included:

  • Trading Standards – including Consumer Protection from Unfair trading Regulations, Cancellation Policies, Terms and Conditions etc
  • Fire Safety Regulations – in particular the requirement for both a fire safety risk assessment and a fire safety policy for your guest accommodation
  • The Planning System – an interesting insight into a private and public sector inititive to improve the fortunes of Great Yarmouth
  • Music Copyright – clarification of Performing Right Society (PRS) licence requirements and reference also to the PPL and their licence requirements

Legal Duties and Responsibilities – topics covered included:

  • Discrimination, Equality and Human Rights – including an interesting presention on guests with Assistance Dogs
  • Terms and Conditions – highlighting the importance of writing your terms and conditions in plain english and avoiding legalese
  • The Digital Business – Wi-Fi data protection and the online environment including a snippett of information on the forthcoming Digital Economy Act and Defermation Bill

The day provided a great insight into the Laws affecting tourism accommodation. Look out for a series of blog posts of interest to holiday home owners over the coming weeks which will expand on some of the above areas, there effect on furnished holiday letting owners together with some solutions to challenges faced by you whilst managing your holiday home, holiday cottage complex or holiday apartments.

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

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Cockermouth Flood RNLI Rescue

PRESS RELEASE: Holiday Home Owners should check their holiday home properties more regularly during adverse weather.

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Holiday Home Owners should check their holiday home properties more regularly during adverse weather. Specialist Holiday Home Insurance broker, Boshers Ltd suggests that holiday home owners would be wise to inspect their furnished holiday lets more frequently during periods of adverse weather, irrespective of their holiday home insurance policies minimum inspection requirements.

Already this winter the UK has been buffeted by a number of storms, bringing high winds, heavy rain and flooding. The latest storm continues to batter North West England and Scotland and according to the Met Office more inclement weather is on the way.

Holiday Let Owners are well advised to inspect their properties on a regular basis and if at all possible, every few days during this inclement weather. Claims instances and their financial, physical and psychological impact can be reduced or mitigated if slipped slates, lose chimney pots, broken branches, blocked watercourses and drains or burst pipes are spotted in time and rectified quickly.

If you live some distance away from your holiday home consider appointing your holiday letting agent, a holiday home services company, your housekeeper or a friendly neighbour, to regularly inspect the property for you.

Through careful property management and good housekeeping, owning a second home for the purpose of holiday letting needn’t be stressful and insurance premiums can be sustained at sensible levels.

Mark Lavington Cert CII, Director of Boshers Ltd commented that, “during the extremely cold spells last winter, many second homes suffered water damage through burst pipes and the extent of some of the insurance claims were exacerbated by delays in discovering the damage”.
For additional guidance on preventative maintenance for holiday home owners, please refer to Boshers Winter Maintenance Checklist

How to make a claim – If your holiday home or main residence is insured via a Boshers Insurance scheme underwrtten by Ecclesiastical – during business hours, please telephone our dedicated claims staff at Boshers on 01237 427992 or alternatively call the Ecclesiastical claims helpline to report your claim on 0845 603 8381. Out of hours, to report a new claim other than legal expenses claim, please call 0845 603 8381 quoting your Holiday Home Insurance policy number, insurer and state that Boshers Ltd are your broker.

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Holiday Home Insurance

12 things to consider when buying holiday home insurance

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Boshers Holiday Home InsuranceLetting a holiday home commercially has many benefits: however, there are also risks – such as not having the right insurance cover to protect your valuable investment. Holiday Home Insurance specialist, Boshers Ltd of www.boshers.co.uk, gives its top 12 things to consider when buying holiday home insurance

  1. Take advice

    Your holiday home is likely to be one of your most valuable assets. Our top tip is take advice from a holiday home insurance broker who specialises in the furnished holiday letting market. They should take the time to understand your needs, importantly they will understand the risks involved in holiday letting and will have negotiated a package of covers to protect your financial interest in the property. Follow the link for information on how to contact Boshers for holiday home insurance advice.

  2. Legislation

    You may not think of furnished holiday letting as a business, however by allowing paying guests stay in your property that is what it becomes. You have a duty of care to your guests, visitors and employees to ensure that you abide by all relevant legislation which covers areas such as health and safety, planning, building regulations, fire safety, gas safety and discrimination.

  3. Disclosure

    Be open and honest with your insurer, it is your responsibility to provide complete and accurate information to your insurers when you take out the policy and throughout the life of your policy. Failure to disclose or giving false information in order to obtain insurance may deem your contract invalid and therefore be costly in the event of a loss.

  4. Policy conditions

    A specialist broker will make you aware of the benefits as well as point out clearly any conditions or warranties that may apply. Make sure that you fully understand the implications if you don’t comply. Excesses should also be considered.

  5. Employers Liability

    Cover to indemnify you against your legal liability to pay damages and legal costs arising out of bodily injury to an employed person such as a cleaner or gardener employed in connection with your holiday let business.

  6. Public and Products Liability

    Cover to indemnify you against your legal liability to pay damages arising out of accidental injury to guests and other visitors to your holiday let and accidental damage to a third parties property caused in connection with your holiday let. This should extend to include liabilities arising from the maintenance of your property and premises and the provision of fire and security services maintained for the protection of your holiday let and the supply of goods sold or supplied by you, in connection with your holiday let business.

  7. Buildings

    As well as covering you for standard perils such as fire, flood and theft, you may want to consider cover for accidental damage. Ensure that the buildings definition of your holiday home insurance policy includes all relevant items such as statues, fountains and hot tubs, swimming pools, tennis courts, paths, drives terraces, patios, walls, fences, hedges and gates, fixed aerials, satellite dishes, wind turbines, solar panels, yards, car parks, roads and storage tanks all on the same site. Remember it is important that you insure for the full replacement costs of all of the above including the cost of architect fees and meeting relevant building regulations.

  8. Contents

    As well as covering you for standard perils such as fire, flood and theft, you may want to consider cover for accidental damage. Remember that contents includes all household goods, furniture and furnishings  contained within your holiday let buildings and they should be insured for their full replacement value. Apartment owners may want to check their block buildings policy to ensure that it extends to cover fixtures and fittings within their apartment such as fitted, kitchen, bathroom and bedroom furniture. If not choose a holiday home insurance provider whose Contents definition will extend to include fixtures and fittings and a low for this when calculating your sums insured.  It is also worth checking that the contents cover does not have any unreasonable exclusions such as excluding accidental damage when occupied by paying guests or theft exclusions unless by forceful and violent entry to the property.

  9. Underinsurance

    Saving money by under-stating your sums insured is a false economy. In the event of a large loss resulting in a claim a loss adjuster may be appointed. One of their first tasks will be to ensure that your sums insured are correct. In the event of underinsurance a deduction for `average’ will be made when settling claims. This means the amount that is paid out for any claim will be reduced in proportion to the degree of underinsurance, leaving you to fund the remaining. Follow the link for further information in our Holiday Home Insurance guide to calculating your sums insured

  10. Loss of rental income

    Cover for loss of your rental income should your holiday let be destroyed or damaged by an insured event which interrupts the letting of it. Ensure that the cover provided is sufficient to cover the typical annual revenue generated by your holiday let. In the event of a large loss, rebuilding can often take up to two years so ensure that the indemnity period is sufficient.  Be careful of policies that only offer cover for loss of income as a result of confirmed pre-bookings.

  11. Legal Expenses

    To ensure an expert service this cover, if included in your holiday home insurance policy will often be arranged in conjunction with a specialist legal expenses insurance company.  Cover may be provided to indemnify the insured person in respect of an insured event in connection with your holiday let business.  You should look for cover which extends to employment disputes, legal defence where it is alleged that the insured has committed a criminal offence in connection with the running of their holiday let. In addition, debt recovery, taxation and vat disputes, the eviction of anyone from the property if they do not have the right to be there. Follow the link for further information on the  legal expenses section of Boshers Holiday Home Insurance policy on page 44

  12. Loss of keys

    The reasonable cost necessarily incurred in replacing door or window locks at your holiday let including locks to safes and alarms following theft or loss of keys. Follow the link for more information on Boshers holiday home insurance and loss of keys cover.

Additional guidance and holiday home insurance quotes are available from the Boshers Holiday Home Insurance Team on 01237 429444.

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

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Carbon Monoxide Be Alarmed Campaign

This winter, make sure you protect yourself and your guests from carbon monoxide poisoning

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Carbon Monoxide Be Alarmed CampaignThis winter, make sure you protect yourself and your guests from carbon monoxide poisoning. As holiday home insurance specialists we provide financial peace of mind for holiday home owners should an insured peril occur and lead to a claim. Responsible holiday cottage owners and holiday home letting agents  give consideration to the safety of their guests. It’s important to furnish yourself with up to date information and for this reason Boshers are pleased to promote the Carbon Monoxide – Be Alarmed! campaign.

It’s widely known that fitting a smoke detector in residential properties is essential to ensure the safety of its residents. However, awareness of the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning, and of the importance of installing a carbon monoxide alarm in a property, remains low. Only 39% of people surveyed recently by the Carbon Monoxide – Be Alarmed! campaign said that they had an alarm in their home – and other evidence suggests that the true figure is actually much lower.

Carbon monoxide is a deadly gas which can kill or cause long-term damage to your health. According to the Department of Health, around 50 people each year die from carbon monoxide poisoning and thousands more are treated in hospital. Carbon monoxide is produced when fuels such as gas, oil, charcoal, coal and wood do not burn completely. The most common cause of this is when an appliance, such as a boiler or cooker, is installed incorrectly or is poorly maintained. Carbon monoxide can also build up when flues, chimneys or vents are blocked. It’s therefore vital that holiday home owners ensure all appliances are installed correctly and serviced annually by a qualified and registered engineer. You can find out more about this on the Carbon Monoxide – Be Alarmed! website here.

Carbon Monoxide Be alarmed ChecklistHowever, given that carbon monoxide is odourless, tasteless and invisible, there is only one way to ensure that you protect yourselves and your guests from carbon monoxide poisoning – by installing an audible carbon monoxide alarm in your property. Alarms are available from £15 and can be bought at DIY stores, some supermarkets, or directly from energy suppliers. You can read more about purchasing and installing an alarm here.

Although it’s not currently a legal requirement in Great Britain for houses to have an alarm fitted, carbon monoxide poisoning is tragic and easily preventable. Install an alarm today and make sure your family, and your guests, do not fall victim to carbon monoxide poisoning.

For a quotation for holiday home insurance for your UK commercially let holiday home call Boshers on 01237 429444 or find out more about our holiday home insurance here.

 

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Visit England

VisitEngland Announces New Marketing Campaign To Develop And Promote Accessible Tourism

VisitEngland Announces New Marketing Campaign To Develop And Promote Accessible Tourism

VisitEngland today unveiled plans for a national marketing campaign to promote accessible tourism in England next year. The national tourist board will work with five destinations to develop exciting itineraries with top class accommodation and attractions that provide a warm welcome for all visitors including those with access needs.  The campaign, a first of its kind, will be promoted through marketing activity starting in late Summer 2013, and is designed to highlight the fantastic tourism experiences on offer to all across the country.

VisitEngland will work with Leicester Shire Promotions, Visit Brighton, NewcastleGateshead Initiative, Bath Tourism Plus and Chester & Cheshire to identify tourism businesses in their area that provide particularly excellent levels of service to visitors with access needs – such as those with hearing and visual impairments, wheelchair users, older and less mobile people and people with pushchairs.

The national tourist board will then work with the destinations and businesses to ensure that they all meet the same high standard of accessibility, focussing on key issues such as customer service and visitor information. This will incorporate a number of VisitEngland’s tools and resources, such as Access Statements and online disability awareness training.

The campaign is funded by £100,000 from the Government’s Regional Growth Fund (RGF) plus contributions from partners. It will provide a cost-effective opportunity for English destinations to showcase their accessible tourism businesses and attract more visits from disabled travellers and their companions; a sector worth almost £2billion a year to the domestic tourism industry*.

Paralympic Medallist and TV Presenter, Ade Adepitan, commented: “VisitEngland’s accessible tourism campaign is a fantastic example of Paralympic legacy.  Promoting destinations in England which are easily accessible and cater to the needs of disabled visitors should inspire all of us to take a break here at home, with the peace of mind that our specific needs will be met so that we can enjoy our holidays to the full.”

James Berresford, VisitEngland’s Chief Executive, commented: “The RGF money is a huge boost for accessible tourism in England; these new itineraries will showcase the best this country has to offer to all visitors, regardless of disability. We know that accessible tourism in England is worth almost £2billion, and we want to harness this growing, high-value market to become internationally recognised as a leading destination for people with access needs.”

This marketing activity is phase two of a three-year investment project called ‘Growing Tourism Locally’.  Funded by £19.8million from the RGF, the project aims to generate £365million in additional tourism spend over the three year period and inspire more Britons to take more holidays at home.  The project should help to stimulate employment to grow jobs in the tourism sector by 9,100 over the three years.

The total investment of the three-year campaign will be approximately £41m including £19.8m from the Regional Growth Fund, £9m from VisitEngland, £12m leveraged from the national and local tourism sector.

You may also be interested in the VisitEngland free guide to Your Business Case and Guide To Improving Accessibility

As holiday home insurance specialists we are well placed to advise holiday home owners who are making improvements to holiday let properties to improve access or installing special equipment such as hoists. For holiday home insurance queries call our advice line on 01237 429444.

 

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Winter Risks Advice

Winter Risks Advice for property owners

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Winter risks advice for property owners – Our holiday home insurance and household insurance underwriters, Ecclesiastical have produced these useful Winter Risks Advice guides for property owners for us to share with you.

Winter Risks Advice

The extremely cold winters of the last few years have led to many businesses, let property, home and holiday home owners sustaining losses from burst pipes, weight of snow on roofs and ingress of water. With the weather once again turning decidedly chilly, now is the time for us to take action and protect our properties.

Last year our holiday home insurance and home insurance household scheme underwriters Ecclesiastical handled just under 2,000* burst pipe claims which caused considerable inconvenience to the property owner and cost an average of £3,627* each to put right. Unoccupied properties such as holiday cottages can be particularly at risk of very expensive claims during the winter months. A high proportion of the £50,000* plus claims last year occurred in properties where the owner was away for no more than a weekend break. There are a number of simple but effective steps property owners can take to both prevent and reduce the impact of cold weather on their properties.

These useful winter risks advice guides are full of hints and tips and are available to view, download and print:

For further information check out the following useful resources:

*Statistics from Ecclesiastical Household claims data, March 2011 – March 2012

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Somerset County Gazette

Tragic death at holiday cottage near Porlock

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A holidaymaker died after a tragic accident at a holiday cottage near Porlock, an inquest has heard.

Somerset County Gazette

Angela Turnball from Bournemouth was 55 when she fell down stairs at a property on Horner Farm last year.

To read the full story `Tragic death at holiday cottage newar Porlock’ as reported by the Somerset County Gazette on the 3rd September 2012 visit their website here

This is an extremely sad story which we are bringing to the attention of holiday home owners via our holiday home insurance blog in the hope that similar accidents may be averted.

Guidance on making your holiday home safer for you and your guests can be found in our recent post:- Limiting the risks of slips and trips in your holiday home

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

Thank you for reading Tragic death at holiday cottage near Porlock.

For information on specialist insurance for commercially let UK holiday homes, cottages and apartments visit Boshers insurance website at www.boshers.co.uk/holiday-home-insurance

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Slips, trips and falls

Limiting the risk of slips and trips in your holiday home

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Slips, trips and falls

Slips, trips and falls

The old adage, “prevention is better than cure” is never truer than when applied to limiting the risk of slips and trips in your holiday home letting property. As holiday home insurance specialists we see public liability claims made by guests and occasionally employees all too often.

Slips and trips are one of the most common causes of of non-fatal major injuries to employees and they also account for over half of all reported accidents to members of the public.

Limiting the risk of slips and trips in your holiday home

All employers and anyone who is in control of premises visited regularly by members of the public should assess and manage the risk of slips and trips at their premises. Slips and trips can result in injuries which may lead to compensation awards that can often be substantial.

Health and Safety legislation affecting holiday home owners

All employers have a responsibility to ensure the safety of their employees and also those not in their employment at their holiday home premises under the Health and Safety at work Act 1974. Subsequent regulations describe te duty to carry out risk assessments and set out specific responsibilities with respect to ensuring a safe work place.

Those in control of premises also have duties under the Occupiers Liability Act 1984. This is defined as follows and clearly extends to control of slip and trip hazards:-

“A duty to take such care as in the circumstance of the case is reasonable to see that the visitor will be reasonably safe in using the premises for the purposes for which he is invited or permitted by the occupier to be there.”

Key questions you should ask yourself about your holiday home

  • Are the internal floor surfaces of your holiday home in good condition?
  • Do you regularly inspect your floors to ensure that they remain in good condition? Have a procedure to ensure that damage is repaired promptly.
  • Have you secured floor coverings such as rugs, mats and carpets?
  • Do you have handrails securely fitted as an aid for climbing steps and stairs?
  • Is your lighting fit for purpose?
  • Have you installed suitable show screens or curtains to minimise water spillage on shower room or bathroom floors?
  • Have you removed tripping hazards such as trailing cables?
  • Are cleaning substances chosen to reduce risk of slippery surfaces?
  • Are the external paths, driveways, patios and steps in good condition, free of defects such as unevan, loose or broken paving bricks, slabs or potholes?
  • Do you have a regular cleaning rota to ensure that your paths are cleared of leaves, lichen and moss which can become slippery when wet?

Good holiday home housekeeping, risk assessments and key action steps

Good holiday home housekeeping is the first and the most important method of preventing falls due to slips and trips. Make it easy for your housekeeper and guests to report any defects within your holiday let and have them rectified as soon as possible. Without good housekeeping practices any other preventative measures will never be fully effective.

Risk assessments for holiday home slips and trips should be carried out to identify possible hazards.

  • Look for slip and trip hazards
  • Decide who might be harmed and how
  • Consider the risks
  • Are there suitable controls in place?
  • If not, determine new/improved control and implement
  • Record your findings as this goes a long way to demonstrate your positive attitude to Health & Safety in the event of a claim against you
  • Review on a regular basis

Key action steps for holiday home owners

  • Ensure that new flooring surfaces are installed so that they are, as far as is practicable, free from tripping and slipping hazards
  • Conduct routine inspections to ensure that all surfaces are free from slip and trip hazards
  • Ensure that rotine maintenance is carried out to remedy defects
  • Implement a sound housekeeping programme

References:-

Preventing slips, trips and falls at work INDG 225 – Free

Workplace health, safety and welfare INDG 244 – Free Available from HSE Books

A quality holiday home insurance policy such as that offered by Boshers for UK holiday lets will include employers and public liability cover to indemnify you against your legal liability to pay damages and legal costs arising out of bodily injury to employees or accidental injury to guests or other visitors to your holiday let. However limiting the risk of slips and trips in your holiday home through prevention is always better than cure!

Follow this link for posts similar to limiting the risks of slips and trips in your holiday home and other useful resources for holiday home owners

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

Thank you for reading limiting the risks of slips and trips in your holiday home.

For further advice and information on specialist holiday home insurance for UK holiday let properties visit www.boshers.co.uk/holiday-home-insurance

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Flooding infographic

Be Flood Aware

Be flood aware

Be flood aware! The UK weather continues to challenge us! If your home or holiday home has been affected by the recent flooding our thoughts are with you. Insurance companies, their claims teams, loss adjusters and revival companies are at full stretch.

Our Home Insurance and Holiday Home Insurance scheme underwriters Ecclesiastical have issued advice for policyholders. For more information click here


How to prepare for flooding an infographic by Ecclesiastical Insurance

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

Follow this link for posts similar to `Be flood aware’ and other useful resources for holiday home owners

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

Thank you for reading `Be flood aware‘..

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Nice holiday home, but is it the name that counts?

We thought it would be fun to sort our holiday home insurance database of UK furnished holiday lets to discover the most popular names. Here is our top 10. 

Our favourite, not in the Top 10. Is it that time yet?

 

1.   The Cottage
2.   The Coach House
3.   The Stables
4.   The Old Stable
5.   Honeysuckle Cottage
6.   Orchard Cottage
7.   Riverside Cottage
8.   Rose Cottage
9.   Stable Cottage
10. April Cottage

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 Nice Holiday Home but is it the name that counts? and 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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