Did you know, the amount of contamination needed to make a smooth floor slippery is very small. A slightly damp or sticky floor is just as slippery as one with a deep spill of water – the obvious spill will just be easier to spot. When we talk about contamination, we refer to anything on […]
Owning a holiday home or holiday let comes with a number of considerations. One of the primary ones is how to keep your guests and yourself safe in and around your property. Included in this is the risk of slips and trips. The two main environmental factors that can lead to slips are weather conditions […]
With stunning beaches, scenic walks, and plenty of open spaces, Cornwall is a paradise for dog lovers. Whether you’re a dog owner planning your next adventure or a holiday let owner looking to enhance your offering, understanding the best dog-friendly places Cornwall has to offer can make all the difference. Not only does promoting your […]
Conducting a slips and trip hazard assessment for a holiday let is essential because it helps protect both you and your guests. By systematically identifying hazards, such as slippery floors, loose carpets, uneven steps, or poorly lit areas, you can take preventive measures to reduce the likelihood of accidents. This not only safeguards your guests’ […]
Having appropriate flooring material in your holiday let is one of the most important precautions that can be taken to prevent slips. Guests often come and go with wet shoes, sandy flip-flops, or muddy boots and areas such as toilets and kitchens can quickly become wet and slippery. This makes the choice of flooring in […]
When you think of personal protective equipment (PPE), you probably imagine construction sites or factories. But holiday lets have their own share of risks too, and sometimes a bit of PPE can make all the difference. From cleaning products to garden tools, here are five simple tips to keep in mind. Don’t overcomplicate it PPE […]
When you hear the term personal protective equipment (or PPE), you might instantly picture builders in hard hats or people working in factories. But PPE isn’t just for construction sites or heavy industry – it can play a role in keeping people safe in holiday lets too. The April 2022 work amendment regulations relating to […]
Slips, usually caused by wet, polished, or otherwise slippery floors and trips, often due to uneven surfaces, clutter, or poor lighting, are among the most common causes of workplace and public liability claims. When a slip or trip accident leads to a liability (compensation) claim, the strength of your defence often comes down to the […]
Safe use of ladders and stepladders in holiday lets (WAH & HSE) Ladders and stepladders are practical tools for short, low-risk tasks around a holiday let – such as basic maintenance or quick repairs. However, if used incorrectly, they present a serious risk of injury. Too often, people are tempted to use the wrong type […]
Do you own a holiday let in Cornwall, along the Devon coast or within the South West? No matter where you are located, owning a holiday let can be a rewarding investment, but it also comes with responsibilities. Guests expect comfort, convenience, and above all, safety. As an owner, ensuring your property is secure isn’t […]
People factors: training, footwear & guest comms to prevent slips As all falls involve an individual, it is likely that the environment (i.e. your property) and the action the individual was taking, is the cause of the slip. This blog looks at steps you, as a holiday let owner can take, to reduce the […]
Running a holiday home is hugely rewarding – but it also comes with responsibilities and compliance requirements, especially when it comes to safety. One area that often gets overlooked is the everyday products we keep under the sink, in the shed, or in the garage. Cleaning fluids, garden treatments, fuels – they’re all things we […]
Full length, written fire risk assessments, covering all aspects of fire safety, have become a legal requirement for properties offering sleeping accommodation to paying guests from the 1st October 2023. This means that all owners that let their property to guests, even for a single night, will need to have a full written Fire Risk […]
A review into the effect of short-term holiday lets aims at improving the holiday letting market for those living in popular tourism destinations. Call for evidence aims to understand impact of increase in short-term holiday lets in England An open call for evidence aims to understand the impact of an increase in short-term holiday lets […]
Genuine small holiday letting businesses in England to be protected by closure of second home tax loophole Owners of second homes in England who abuse a tax loophole by claiming their often-empty properties are holiday lets will be forced to pay under tough new measures. The new rules, to be introduced in April 2023, were […]
National Lockdown – Stay At Home On the 4th January 2021 the Government announced a third lockdown in England to control the rapid increase of coronavirus cases. The devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are all taking their own similar measures. For full details of the restrictions affecting you and your holiday letting […]
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the hospitality and tourism industry have pulled together to produce protocols across all sectors, including specific Covid-19 Holiday Let Cleaning Guidance for self-catering properties. The Covid-19 Holiday Let Cleaning Guidance protocols were recently updated (July 2021) and will be kept under review. Certification and Assessment Schemes There are also […]
Holiday homeowners and holiday letting agents alike are understandably concerned about the potential for the disruption which coronavirus (Covid-19) may cause. Boshers have put together a list of frequently asked questions (FAQ’s). Hopefully these will help to clarify the position with respect to holiday let bookings and coronavirus. This includes details on cover provided by […]
In late January reports began to emerge of the presence of a potentially deadly virus in the city of Wuhan, China. Since then the continued spread of Coronavirus (now clinically known as COVID 19) has shown no signs of abating, with more than 167,511 people across the world testing positive for the virus and the […]
Whilst many of us spent mid-December enjoying and revelling in the run up to Christmas, for Whirlpool and their customers, things were seemingly going from bad to worse. Having already been heavily criticised for their response to a fire risk in their tumble dryers (of which they sold more than five million over an 11 […]
We all know that from time to time accidents happen; perhaps someone spills a glass of wine (hopefully not red!) or smashes a glass fresh from the dishwasher. We can accept those and understand that accidents happen to the best of us. However what if someone were to cause malicious damage to your holiday home? […]
Boshers LtdHaving the right insurance cover will help you run your self-catering cottage business with confidence. As a holiday letting insurance specialist we have pulled together a few pointers to consider when insuring your cottage complex: Don’t forget however many bookings you take, you are running a self-catering cottage business There are a wide range of […]
Top tips to get your holiday let website in great shape for the New Year With the busiest months now behind us are you ready for a January rush of bookings? Here’re some helpful tips to make sure that your website is doing your holiday home and destination justice. Is all of your website content […]
What are Smart Meters and are there benefits of installing them in your holiday home? If there was a simple way for you to monitor, even reduce the gas and electricity bills in your holiday home or cottages would you do it? The answer for most people would be yes, so when the current Government’s […]
Our advice to holiday homeowners comes as the Met Office predicts temperatures to dip, bringing an end to the mild conditions experienced across much of the UK this autumn. Whilst many holiday homes are still busy with guests enjoying a low season break, the risks of burst pipes are reduced. However, the weather can soon […]
‘Quality’; it’s something we all strive to achieve and love to enjoy. In no other area is this truer than in the tourism sector; an abundance of choice combined with online reviews from sites such as TripAdvisor mean that the discerning guest has never been as well informed or full of expectation. So how do […]
In the UK it’s fair to say that the majority of us don’t really get along with bugs or insects, so it’s also reasonable to add that we’d definitely not feel too comfortable with the idea of thousands of them being in our bed! Unfortunately, that prospect is becoming more and more likely with a […]
No matter if you’re at home or on holiday, your bedroom should be a safe haven. Somewhere you can relax and recuperate after a long day at the beach, with the kids or simply going about your daily tasks. Imagine how comfortable you’d feel if you knew that as soon as you slipped between your […]
‘Millennial’ is a word that we hear more and more as time goes by and it’s used to mean many different things. In essence, millennials are currently aged between twenty-six and forty-one. So, what are the chances of attracting millennials to your coastal holiday home? According to research from the National Coastal Tourism Academy (NCTA), […]
With the busy summer holiday letting season fast becoming a distant memory, now is the time to be thinking about how to increase off-peak bookings during the low season. As you’ll already know, the opportunities for parents to take their children out of school during term time are now limited, meaning that focus needs to […]