A third of private renters have no home insurance

Housing association tenants are more likely to have home insurance than private renters, according to new research from the AA.

Its figures show that a third of private renters do not have any home insurance, compared to a quarter of housing association tenants.

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Additionally, just 54% of private renters have contents insurance compared to 64% of housing association tenants.

The AA says housing association tenants may be more likely to have home insurance due to housing managers recommending in-house contents insurance cover to their clients.

When looking at the national picture, almost one in ten homes (9%) do not have any type of home insurance, rising to 29% for low income households.

Janet Connor, managing director for AA Insurance services said, “It is worrying that 2.4 million households risk losing it all as they have no home insurance.

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“The widely reported high cost of private rent may be a reason why renters are not buying any form of cover. With three in 10 low income households saying they do not have insurance, it is possible they see insurance as a ‘nice to have but cannot afford’ purchase.

“For less than £1 a week, renters can give themselves and their possessions protection and peace of mind regardless of how they got damaged, lost or stolen.

“Rather than have nowhere to turn, we want every household to have some form of insurance cover, as anything can happen.”