Landlords warned over student insurance premiums

Buy-to-let property investors are being warned that they may have to pay higher insurance premiums if they have student tenants.

Insurance broker Rawlins says that insurers are more wary of student tenants and therefore tend to charge higher premiums.

The fears centre on a belief that students are less likely to look after a property, not necessarily because they are reckless but because they are more likely than professional tenants to be short-term residents.

Hazel Rees, account handler for Rawlins, says that there are a number of reasons why an insurer may charge higher premiums.

"Private tenants - professional, working people - might get a discount on the rates, because they tend to be in there longer and maybe take more care of the place," she commented.

"A flat within a block of flats tends to be more or less rated the same as an ordinary house. But if it's a flat above a shop or office, or other commercial premises, there's an increased fire risk, so [the cost would rise]," added Ms Rees.

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