Rent Guarantee Insurance

Rent Guarantee Insurance protects landlords in the event of a tenant not paying their rent, so your investment is not at risk.

12 months cover

£299

This insurance is administered by Arc Legal Assistance Ltd and underwritten by AmTrust Europe Limited.

What does Rent Guarantee Insurance cover?

Breach of tenancy agreement

Costs to pursue the tenant following a breach of any of their obligations under the tenancy agreement.

Pursuit of rent arrears

Costs to pursue rent arrears which began during the period of insurance.

Eviction

Costs to evict anyone in the property without your permission.

Legal defence

Costs to defend civil proceedings in respect of any act or omission by you arising from your ownership or management of the property.

Rent arrears guarantee

Costs for rent arrears owed by the tenant.

Legal helpline

Free access to legal advice and guidance.

Excellent service. Respectful & attentive, we are very satisfied! Very valuable advice was given. Thanks!

Allen Panter

What is Rent Guarantee Insurance for landlords?

For landlords, it’s no surprise that rent arrears and tenant debt can be concerning. Rent Guarantee Insurance (also known as Tenant Default Insurance or Rent Protection) makes sure that the landlord is covered in the event of rent going unpaid and also that any subsequent action needed is taken care of. This includes any legal costs that may be incurred by the landlord. Having a policy like this is in line with the latest eviction laws, which state what landlords need to be aware of in terms of tenancy notice. For example, if a landlord is planning to evict a tenant, the tenant can stall the hearing if they can prove they can start making their payments. This process can sometimes take a long time, which can result in the landlord losing income.

Rent Guarantee Insurance protects landlords during times of economic uncertainty. In total, 58% of evictions take place because of rent arrears. For renters, 9% claim paying their rent is difficult, 4% are currently in arrears, while 5% have been in arrears in the past. As rent prices go up and debts increase, coverage such as Rent Guarantee Insurance becomes increasingly important. This is why we have seen an increase in landlords putting a Rent Guarantee Insurance policy in place.

In today’s market, landlords need to act like every tenant could face financial constraints, which may prevent them from paying their rent. A Rent Guarantee Insurance policy is a way for landlords to remain in control of such situations.

What is Rent Guarantee Insurance for landlords?

Don’t get caught out of pocket

If you don’t want to leave receiving rent to chance, rent guarantee insurance is definitely the way to go. You may never need to use its might, but you’ll be oh-so grateful if you do. Get in touch to talk about getting some peace of mind.

Rent Guarantee Insurance

Even the best tenants can run into problems which make it hard to pay rent. Protect your rent up to £2,500 per month.

How does Rent Guarantee Insurance work?

The process of getting a Rent Guarantee Insurance policy put in place is easier than you may imagine. Before you apply, there are three things you’ll need to provide us with before you can be deemed eligible. These are:

The tenant’s references
The Assured Shorthold Tenancy
Evidence that the tenant’s security deposit is placed in an official tenancy deposit scheme.

The Assured Shorthold Tenancy contract should clearly state the date when the tenancy began, the date when the rent is due, the time frame of the lease, and a rent review clause.

From there, Mashroom will proceed with issuing your Rent Guarantee Insurance in three simple steps:

If all the requirements are met and the policy is approved, you will be presented with a quote that will include price breakdowns and policy wordings, along with our terms and conditions. Once this is all agreed upon, your documents will be waiting for you online in your Mashroom account.

Our policy covers a myriad of things, including pursuing the tenant to recover the below:

Any rent that may be owed
Repossession costs that may be owed
The costs of legal proceedings in relation to evicting tenants
Recovering unpaid rent up to £25,000, which is £2,500 a month,
Finding alternative accommodation if needed, plus coverage of all legal costs, such as witnesses, counselling and any contract disputes you may face.

The aim of Rent Guarantee Insurance is to make the lives of landlords as efficient and hassle-free as possible. We take all the factors such as any additional fees that may occur into consideration ensuring no mortgage payments or income is missed. Unlike most providers, Mashroom’s policies also cover any legal costs that may arise, including those incurred during the eviction process. This can take up to six months as there are many stages a landlord needs to go through before they are able to successfully evict a tenant, such as providing proof of lack of payment over a period of time. Depending on your policyholder, these are usually standalone deals; however, with Mashroom, this can come as a dual product.

Once the policy is in place, the way it works is as soon as the tenant stops paying rent you are eligible to submit a claim. Once a claim is made, you will receive an acknowledgement letter, which will need to be returned with the landlord’s signature included. After this signed letter has been received, the first payment can be made. If the tenant remains unable to make their rental payments and further payment is required, you will need to confirm that the tenants are remaining in the property and fill out a continuation form. Once we have received this and everything has been confirmed, further payment will be made. We aim to do this within 14 days.

The policy itself will last for twelve months. This is irrespective of if the payment is made annually or monthly. Details about the claim and how it is handled can be found in our policy wording.

The benefits of having this protection as a landlord

Mortgage payments don’t stop regardless of your financial status. You may lose your income but banks will still expect you to pay the mortgage. This means landlords can have their properties repossessed if these payments are not made.

Due to the pandemic and COVID, it has now become a necessity rather than an added extra to have Rent Guarantee Insurance. Over the past couple of years, due to the global health crisis and its impact on people’s jobs and livelihoods, there has been a rise in claims from landlords trying to recoup their mortgage payments and this is not going to change anytime soon. The laws set in place as a result of the pandemic still remain and COVID remains unpredictable. The National Residential Landlord Association (NRLA) found the housing market was still feeling the implications from the first lockdown as rental debt has increased by 41% since May, with tenants now owing an average of £1270. It has also been reported that 430,000 tenants admit to owing their landlord money. Due to the pandemic, we were in and out of lockdown which meant landlords had to rely heavily on their Rent Guarantee Insurance in order to keep up with their payments.

There are many laws out there that protect tenants and rightfully so; however, the Rent Guarantee Insurance is one thing the landlord can do to protect themselves. A benefit of our product compared to others on the market is that the product is set at a fixed price and is not dependent on rent. Landlords are able to pay this on a monthly basis, instead of annually, allowing you to balance costs more effectively.

Now, of course, the Bank of England has the power to increase mortgage rates. If this happens and you or your tenants are able to cover these costs, Rent Guarantee Insurance provides you with the protection you need, including in the event of an eviction. At Mashroom, if a claim has been made, we can work with you to evict a tenant who is not on the lease.

When looking into placing your Rent Guarantee Insurance policy, what you might find is that most insurance companies will say that if a tenant is a month into arrears and has made a tiny contribution, they will consider this as a rental payment, meaning your policy will not kick in and you will not be able to make a claim. At Mashroom, this is not the case, you can claim in relation to one month of arrears as long as the payment has not been made in full.
With us, the process of applying for Rent Guarantee Insurance is made easy. It is all done online and takes a matter of minutes. Please just ensure you have a copy of your tenant’s reference and Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) on hand as you will need these in order to be eligible.

The benefits of having this protection as a landlord

Are there any instances where this cover won’t cover your losses?

As part of our policy, we recover rental costs for properties up to £25,000. This works out to your tenant paying rent up to £2,500 a month. Should your rent arrears exceed this amount, we would not be able to cover the additional sum you have lost.

Another instance where you may not be covered is if your property is split into two apartments. You are required to have one policy per tenancy agreement; therefore, if this is the case, the annual premium will be charged.

Our policies include a qualifying period where, if a tenancy agreement started before the tenant reference was obtained, you will not be able to make a claim for events taking place within the first ninety days of the first period of the insurance. Mashroom policies exclude claims if you cannot provide a tenant reference.

In order for your policy to kick in and a claim to be made, you need to notify your insurers or policy brokers within 30 days of you having knowledge about the payments being missed. Any outstanding costs that occurred before the claim has been approved are out of our jurisdiction.

On the other hand, HMOs (house in multiple occupations) where you have three or more people living in the same space from different households can be covered with your Mashroom Rent Guarantee Insurance policy. Please remember to ensure they would need to fulfil the tenancy referencing criteria in order for the policy to be approved.

The majority of rental agreements require a guarantor – i.e., someone who has the funds to make the payments should your tenant be unable to make it themselves. Landlords are able to contact the guarantor to fulfil the payment on behalf of the tenant. If payment has still not been made and the landlord remains in arrears, you can make a claim under our Rent Guarantee Policy. In order for this to be covered, please ensure the guarantor fits the acceptance criteria and is named within the tenancy agreement. If they are not named, the policy will not cover the claim.

Documentation is important when making a claim. If you are planning to make a claim, please ensure you have the following in order for your claim to be covered.

Tenancy agreement
Section 21 notice/Notice to quit
Section 8 notice
Rental records
References
A copy of your policy schedule, confirming the details of your policy
Court papers (if any)
Deposit scheme terms and conditions
Energy Performance Certificate
Gas Safety Certificate
Proof the ‘How to Rent’ leaflet was provided to the tenant at the start of their tenure at the property

There are also situations, such as where a tenant has been evicted or has left the property of their own free will with outstanding payments, where claims can be made. You will find recovering these costs is often not included in insurance policies provided by other insurance companies. However, as Mashroom does not work with third parties, this allows us to include these scenarios within our policy costs.

Certain types of tenants can prevent you from gaining cover. This includes:

If your tenant is a student
Unemployed
They were accepted without providing a tenant reference

This can prevent your policy or claim from being accepted.

If during the twelve months of your Rent Guarantee Insurance policy you opt to stop renting the property and put it on the market, your policy will become void and if any payments are being made, it will be stopped.

When looking for a Rent Guarantee Insurance Policy, it is important to consider how many months of missed rent does it cover? In some cases, even if the policy is for 12 months, it may only cover up to 4 months’ rent. In other instances, you will find the policy covers the entire duration of the contract or the eviction of the tenant.

Have a question about what is covered in our policies? Our team is on hand to answer any questions you may have.

Are there any instances where this cover won’t cover your losses?

What are the costs of Rent Guarantee Insurance policies?

How much will a Rent Guarantee Insurance policy cost?

In general, the cost of a Rent Guarantee Insurance policy can vary depending on the type of property being rented out, the location of the property, and the number of tenants in the property.

At Mashroom, we provide our own FCA-regulated product, which makes our policy ultimately a cheaper option for landlords as it removes a lot of the additional fees that can be incurred. Some insurance companies provide policies that exclude important costs, such as legal expenses -a landlord wanting to proceed with legal action would therefore need to find funding independently. Sourcing these additional funds may even mean taking out another insurance policy, which obviously is not ideal. At Mashroom, these costs are included within your policy.

A policy with us will cost you £299 per year, which covers you for 12 months.

While we understand there are some costs involved in obtaining a Rent Guarantee Insurance policy, we advise you to apply for one sooner rather than later. If you wait for an issue to arise before completing your application, you will not be able to make a claim against that particular issue.

Will Rent Guarantee Insurance protect your rental income?

In a nutshell, yes – the point of your Rent Guarantee Insurance is to essentially protect your rental income. Having a policy in place means you do not have to worry about any missed rent payments as you can claim back any owed money that meets the policy requirements. The only time you may be unable to protect your rental income is if the rent is more than £25,000 annually, which equates to up to £2,500 a month.

What happens if you don’t have a Rent Guarantee Insurance policy?

To put it bluntly, without having a Rent Guarantee Insurance policy, you are relying on your tenants never missing a rent payment. If, for whatever reason, the rent you are expecting to appear in your bank fails to materialise, without a Rent Guarantee Insurance policy in place, any external legal costs you may incur in trying to claim it will have to come out of your own pocket. Having a policy in place means you don’t have to worry at all about these costs and you will also receive your missing payment far quicker than pursuing legal action.

We understand finding the right Rent Guarantee Insurance policy is not easy. We would like to make it clear, while it is not a legal requirement, having a Rent Guarantee policy in place is a vital tool for any landlord in today’s housing market. It is a much-needed safety net to rely on.

Other types of Mashroom insurance packages

Home Emergency Insurance

As a landlord, you are responsible for fixing any emergencies that occur in your rented property. Home Emergency Insurance ensures the cost of said emergency, as well as any repairs that may be required, is covered.

The emergencies covered include incidents such as the loss of keys, bathroom leaks, electrical issues, sudden boiler breakdowns, pest control, and much more. The insurance coverage also ensures you can provide alternative accommodation, should it be needed. Of course, all of this can become very costly without the help of Home Emergency Insurance, which is why it is a crucial consideration for any landlord.

The winter months, in particular, are where the need for Home Emergency Insurance ramps up. This colder period can be a huge financial burden for those unprepared and who do not have a policy in place. Due to the weather changing, there is naturally an increase in boiler issues and leaks, which can cause ceilings to crumble or, in the worst cases, cave entirely.

When looking into Home Emergency Insurance, it is important to note it is up to the broker to determine what an emergency is. For example, losing your keys or being unable to get into your house is an emergency. For general home repairs that occur due to everyday tear and wear, your tenant will need to look into getting a tenant’s Contents Insurance, such as the one provided by Mashroom, which will cover this. Home Emergency Insurance is reserved for those sudden unexpected incidents you do not see coming, such as adverse weather conditions. Even broader concerns like global warming and its impact on the environment are causing issues for landlords, such as flooding due to storms. While Home Emergency Insurance covers the call-out fees and cost of immediate repairs, it will not cover the costs of repairing the full damages caused by the emergency. This is where your tenants’ Contents Insurance policy will come into play.

Having a Home Emergency Insurance policy in place can be far cheaper than having to pay for emergency services yourself. It takes the worry away from figuring out how you’re going to pay for emergency call-out rates and repairs, which are often expensive due to the urgency of the issue. What’s more, you can rest assured that the contractor provided has been fully vetted through an auditing process, as we make sure they are managed by our claims supplier CPA.

At Mashroom, we provide a nationwide 24/7 helpline service all year round, so that claims can be registered without delay, no matter the time of day or night. The authorised repair personnel will carry out the emergency repairs within the time scale provided, weather and traffic permitting. This includes emergencies that take place over the weekend. Importantly, in contrast to Rent Guarantee Insurance, you can have a Home Emergency Insurance policy in place and in use while the property is vacant.

Our Home Emergency Insurance covers incidents such as overnight accommodation, and up to £250 of boiler cover. Our policy, however, does not include replacing boiler parts or appliances, or boilers that have not been serviced in over 12 months. Temporary repairs may be done to resolve an immediate emergency; however, permanent repairs will not be covered as per the Residential Landlord Emergency Assistance Policy. For instance, if something happened to your ceiling, under the confines of the policy, we would not be able to offer a full repair; however, we would provide a small service to prevent further damage to the property. For more details or if you have questions about what our Home Emergency Insurance covers, please get in touch.

The way in which this can be set up with us is simple. Like the Rent Guarantee Insurance and Contents Insurance, you can easily apply to have your Home Emergency Insurance set up via our website. You simply purchase the insurance for a property you have listed with us, highlight the date you would like the policy to start, and we will send you the relevant documents you need to open your Mashroom account. Once we have all of the relevant information, we will put together your quote, basing the calculation on an assessment of your needs. With Home Emergency Insurance, there is a cut-off of funds that can be allocated. If the cost of the emergency is more than £1,000, any additional costs will need to be matched by the landlord.

Tenants Contents Insurance

Contents Insurance refers to the policy landlords need to make sure their tenants have in place order to make sure the belongings within their properties are insured. Please note that this is different from insuring the property itself. Home Emergency Insurance and Rent Guarantee Insurance Policies are to do with the property itself, not its contents.

At Mashroom, Contents Insurance is paid on a monthly rolling plan, with no hidden fees. The Contents Insurance policy covers items such as furniture, clothes, and household electrical appliances, such as your freezer, microwave, kettle, and even less obvious items like hair straighteners. As many of us are now working from home more regularly, it also covers your home office, such as computers, laptops, mobile phones, printers, and general office equipment.
Your Contents Insurance policy will insure your possessions up to £30,000 against unfortunate incidents such as fires, theft, vandalism, and general wear and tear. As a landlord, you should be aware that your tenants are covered for any accidental damage they do to your property.

The Contents Insurance policy at Mashroom is for tenants. It is taken out monthly starting from the date the policy becomes active. This will continue until the tenant logs into their Mashroom account and manually cancel it. If your tenant travels a lot, it is imperative to have a Contents Insurance policy in place. Our policy has an out-of-home add-on for additional cover, which means the belongings they are travelling with, excluding photography equipment, musical equipment, and jewellery, will be protected against theft and accidental damage if they travel anywhere across Europe and worldwide. When travelling beyond Europe, this will last for 60 days. If your tenant is a cyclist or owns a bike, it is vital they check their Contents Insurance policy includes bicycles, as not all do. Mashroom’s Contents Insurance policy does include bicycles, including unintended loss or damage anywhere in Europe; however, this does not include scooters or motorbikes.

A key component of our Contents Insurance policy is excess. Excess is the amount you pay yourself when you make an insurance claim. Our standard compulsory excess is £100. This covers things such as escaping water, subsidence, ground heave, and landslip claims. There is also a voluntary excess you can contribute towards. The higher the excess, the lower your monthly payment becomes; however, the voluntary excess would need to be paid every time you have a successful claim.

Purchasing a Contents Insurance policy with Mashroom is easy. First, you’ll need a quote, which you can get by clicking the ‘Get Covered’ button on the Contents Insurance page, or simply request a quote here. We’ll ask you first to submit a few key details about your property and belongings, which will form the basis of the quote we provide you with. Once this is received and you are happy with the said quote, you will then purchase the offer, which will become active on your chosen date. As with Home Emergency Insurance and Rent Guarantee Insurance, all the documents you need for your policy and to make a claim will be placed in your Mashroom account for you to access as and when you need them.

How to find the perfect tenant

Picking the right tenant to fill your property can be a laborious task. It is important to make the right choice, and while finding the right tenant might seem impossible, it is in fact possible, especially when you put the following in place. At Mashroom, we work with the landlord to maintain a good relationship with their tenants.

Once you know who your ideal tenant is we can advertise your property making sure it is published on websites such as Rightmove, Zoopla, and Mashroom at no added cost allowing you to book viewing as soon as possible.

At Mashroom, we focus on the relationship between people and their homes – a connection we know goes beyond money. We work with landlords to ensure they have a rewarding relationship with their tenants throughout the entire tenancy. Our free online dashboard makes it easy for landlords and tenants alike to find any correspondence and tools in one secure location. This is where you will find details of your Rent Guarantee Insurance policy and any claims you have made. In addition to this, we also advise your tenants to look into getting Contents Insurance and Home Emergency Insurance, which will add additional protection for your property and allow you the ease of mind knowing you are covered whatever issues may come your way.

Running a background check

Thanks to technology, it has never been easier to carry out a background check on a potential tenant. You can learn more about their credit score and rental history, see if they are known for having parties on the property, giving you an idea of how reliable they are and if they are someone you want as a lodger.

Upkeep

To ensure you get the level of tenant applications you want and they stay, one of the main things you need to do is keep up with regular maintenance. If the walls need painting or a lock is broken or there is a problem with the sink, fixing them as soon as possible will go a long way in your relationship with your tenant, ensuring they feel safe enough to continue staying in the place. If you had a previous tenant living there, make sure the place is thoroughly cleaned and checked over for any damages before the new tenant moves in to avoid any issues. This will go a long way in establishing trust with your tenant.

Confirm the length of stay of the tenant

Whether you are looking for a short-term renter or someone more long term, it is important to make sure this is all laid out with the prospective tenant before any agreements are signed and a deal is made. If you know you would prefer to have a tenant with a year’s lease, it is worth noting this down in your advert and making them aware of this in the first conversation you have with them.

Use a guarantor

You never know what can happen to a tenant financially. At the time they sign the lease they may have a stable job and are able to make the payments; however, six months later it could be a very different situation. This is why it is important you have two things in place. A Rent Guarantee Insurance policy to ensure you do not remain out of pocket. Secondly, ensuring a guarantor signs the lease gives you another level of protection to make sure your payments will be made.

Confirm your non-negotiables

This includes things such as allowing pets on the property or other people to stay on the premises long term. as this can often involve additional paperwork. Having this clearly indicated from the offset will mean you waste less time talking to unsuitable tenants who may be looking for a place with a dog or a place where their partner can essentially stay with them as a sharer.

Know the local area and market

Price is everything. Make sure the price of your property is in line with other properties in the area. Tenants will want to know things such as how accessible the public transport from the property is. Is there a supermarket nearby? If it is a family, how far it is from a school or the local park. Having this on hand from the offset will show the tenant you are a reliable landlord who knows the area.

Viewings

We understand that, since the pandemic, face to face viewings have not been as common, but it is still advisable to have some form of face-to-face conversation in advance of accepting a new tenant. Start by including a virtual tour on your listing so tenants are able to get a 360 view of the property. Following this, video calls are a great way to fill this void.

Be prepared

Make sure you have a list of questions on hand for your meeting with the tenant. This can include everything from knowing about them as a person, what they do as a living, are they planning to stay in the place on their own or do they have a family, to asking them about their rental history. Being prepared also involves making sure you have a copy of the tenancy agreement so you can talk through it should the initial conversation go well and the tenant wants to proceed with the next steps.

Ask questions

We mentioned having questions ready in the above point, but we want to reiterate this as it is crucial you feel comfortable enough to ask as many questions as you need during your conversation with the client. Ask them while you have a chance.

Discrimination

Be aware of any biases you may have. As a landlord, you cannot refuse to rent someone a property based on their gender, race, nationality, or disability.

Always get a reference

A tenant reference is something you will need to have in place for yourself as part of your Rent Guarantee Insurance policy, but as part of your background check, you can also ask the tenants to provide these. You are also welcome to request employment and income references, should you feel the need to.

Get Creative

Remember you are selling your tenants a home they can see themselves in. It will stand you in good stead if you worked on the staging of the property before you begin viewings. A strategically placed plant or piece of art in the living room for example can make all the difference.

We're on hand to help

Trust, loyalty and mutual support are very important to us, which is why our team of experts is not afraid to answer any hard-hitting questions you have about any of our services. For any policy-specific questions, please view our Frequently Asked Questions below or, alternatively, our friendly experts are on hand to answer your question, you can contact us using the form here or book a call below.

Still have questions? We have answers

Wondering if Rent Guarantee Insurance is right for you? We’ve got all you need to know right here!

Can tenants buy Rent Guarantee Insurance?

Unfortunately not, Rent Guarantee Insurance is created solely for landlords. In much the same way that landlords can’t purchase our Tenants Contents Insurance, tenants can’t buy RGI.

RGI covers landlords in the event of rent arrears (including part-payment, in the case of Mashroom’s RGI), so this is not something that’s relevant for tenants.

How can tenants protect themselves?

If tenants are worried about what will happen in the event they lose their job, there are ways to protect themselves.

Have savings. As the cost of living increases, it can be hard to save up anything once the bills are paid, but try to save as much as you can per month. This is useful if you want to put a deposit down on your own home one day, but also provides a buffer should you need a little extra money.
Speak to your landlord. The first thing you should do when you think you may not be able to pay your rent is speak to your landlord. Keep the lines of communication open. Be honest and explain your situation to your landlord and you may be able to come to an agreement about a payment plan while you get back on your feet financially.
Know where you can get help. As we’ve said above, it can be difficult to save when bills are going up, so it’s important to know where to turn in the event that you do need financial assistance. Speak to Citizen’s Advice to find out where you can turn to get some support.

What insurances can tenants get?

If you are a tenant in the market for insurance, you should look into Contents Insurance. While your landlord will have various insurances taken out on the building, to cover accidents and emergencies, these insurances won’t cover your items.

This is especially important if you don’t live in a pre-furnished home. You are likely to have invested a lot of money in your home, from large pieces of furniture like sofas and beds, to expensive tech essentials such as your TV, laptop and mobile phone. You may be investing in these items now, with a view to moving them into your first-time-buyer home, so make sure your things are covered in the event of fire, flood or theft with Contents Insurance (which covers you inside and outside of your home!)

Without Contents Insurance, you risk a large outlay in the event anything happens to your things. Of course, nothing may happen – but why take the risk?

Does Rent Guarantee Insurance cover tenants on housing benefits or DSS?

This really depends on your policy, so be sure to speak to your advisor about this and familiarise yourself with the small print before you take on a new tenant. If your policy doesn’t cover DSS tenants and you take one on, who is then unable to apy, your insurance wouldn’t pay out.

If you are looking for a policy that allows you to rent to a wider audience, look for one that does cover DSS tenants, like Mashroom’s Rent Guarantee Insurance.

What could void a Rent Guarantee Insurance claim?

While it’s important to know what your policy does cover, it’s equally important to know what it doesn’t cover – as you want to avoid any nasty surprises when you make a claim.

No tenant referencing. Most policies will insist that you have thoroughly referenced your tenant before taking out the insurance. This ensures that you have done your due diligence and are not renting to someone with a history of not paying their rent. If you make a claim and your insurer finds that you have not properly referenced your tenants, you would not see a pay out
If the rent is too high. Mashroom RGI caps cover at £2,500 and most other policies will also have a cap, so be sure to make sure you know what that cap is!
Antisocial behaviour. If your tenant has shown any antisocial behaviour, the legal expenses for breaching the tenancy agreement will not be covered, but the Rent Guarantee will be.
Tenancy start date. If the tenancy starts more than 31 days after the tenant referencing was completed, the guarantee will not be active.
Age of tenant. If your tenant is under 18 and doesn’t pay rent, RGI won’t cover it.

While these exemptions are specific to Mashroom’s RGI policy, most other policies will have some or all of these exemptions, or similar. So be sure to double check the small print so you know exactly what you’re signing!

What else can I do to protect my investment?

There are lots of ways to protect your investment that also make your landlord life easier. We’ll break down the best ways to protect yourself and your property.

Do your homework on new tenants

Make sure you know who your tenants are. At Mashroom, we make it easier for landlords to self-manage and we really encourage you to build a relationship with your tenants and meet them before you agree to take them on. This way, you know exactly who is moving into your property and reassure yourself that you feel comfortable with who will be living there.

Taking this a step further, we really encourage you to get tenant referencing on everyone who will be living in your property. Meeting people in person and going on your own good judgement is great, but nothing beats a full reference to give you additional information and peace of mind.

It’s also important to get official tenant referencing if you want to get Rent Guarantee Insurance, you can’t get RGI without it!

Full suit of insurance

Don’t rely on good luck and savings! When it comes to your property, you should definitely hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. You’ve done your homework to confirm you’ve got the best tenants, but make sure you’ve got a full suite of insurance behind you as well.

Home Emergency Insurance will cover you in the event of – you guessed it! – home emergencies. If there’s a fire, or a flood, an infestation, a boiler breakdown or just a set of lost keys – HEI will save you from dipping into your pocket.

Of course, you might have HEI and never need to touch it, but it’s there if you need it, so you don’t need to worry about how you’d pay a tradesperson if the heating suddenly stopped working in the middle of winter!

We’ve talked about RGI already, but it’s a really important string to the landlord bow, ensuring that you are covered in the event of missed rent and eviction needs.

Finally, make sure you have buildings insurance too. Most lenders won’t allow you to take out a mortgage without buildings insurance and life insurance, so make sure you’re covered!

If you’ve got all the necessary insurance, you know your property and your pocket are protected.

Gear the asset

While this may sound counterintuitive, consider growing your portfolio. The larger your portfolio, the safer you are.
When a property falls into a void period, this will hit you in the pocket. But if you have a couple of other properties, then the profit from them will help you cover the mortgage on your empty property.

Be sure to speak with a mortgage specialist before taking the leap, but this is one way to protect yourself.

Best Landlord Rent Guarantee Insurance comparison

So now that we’ve convinced you to make sure that you have Rent Guarantee Insurance, you’re probably itching to get a quote. Check out the best ones below.

If you have more questions that we haven’t covered here, or you’d just like to speak to a person, you can book a call with our great advisors, who’ll be able to answer your questions and get you a quote in minutes.

How to find the perfect tenant

Running a background check

Upkeep

It’s important you understand what is and isn’t covered by the Rent Guarantee and Legal Expenses Insurance. The examples and descriptions above are only intended as a guide and you will be able to find the full details in the policy document and Insurance Product Information Document. We do not provide personal recommendations regarding the arrangement of insurance cover. By asking us to quote for, arrange or handle your insurances, you are providing your informed agreement to our Terms of Business.