Home swapping is quickly becoming a mainstream alternative to your run of the mill hotel holiday, allowing house swappers the chance to visit their favourite places across the world at the fraction of the cost of a traditional vacation. To facilitate this idea, the internet has seen the rapid growth of home exchange websites that allow consumers to exchange information and allow these dreams to become reality. LoveHomeSwap is a British company that recently sealed its position as the largest home swapping platform in the world. To help give its customers some extra protection, the company offers what it calls ‘Swap Protection,’ a type of insurance that gives you cover should the worst happen whilst you are away on holiday. But is this cover enough for you
What it offers.
This type of cover offers two main benefits. The first of these is called ‘Travel Protection’ and can potentially cover you for up to £2,500 for the provision of travel costs in the event that the holiday home you have agreed to stay is withdrawn. This benefit should provide a level of peace of mind.
The second benefit is cover against accidental damage to your property for up to £5,000, although this decreases to £2,500 in the event of damage caused by pets. However, if you look beyond this benefit, this type of cover is not likely to give you the kind of protection you may need.
The second benefit is cover against accidental damage to your property for up to £5,000, although this decreases to £2,500 in the event of damage caused by pets. However, if you look beyond this benefit, this type of cover is not likely to give you the kind of protection you may need.
Limited cover.
On the website’s terms and conditions, it states that it’s property damage protection for up to £5,000 worth of accidental damage cover, limits cover to minor damage. But what if a guest accidently caused a fire in your home? Or left a bath tap running? Whilst these types of incidents may seem unlikely, they are worth considering, especially if you can get cover for such things elsewhere at little extra cost.
No malicious damage or theft.
Unfortunately, as LoveHomeSwap’s protection is designed to cover incidents that have arisen as the result of an accident, it won’t cover you for damage that has been caused deliberately. In addition, you won’t be covered for theft either, which could put you severely out of pocket if you’ve have left valuables in your home.
No personal injury cover.
What would you do if a guest seriously injured themselves on your property? Without third party liability insurance or legal expense cover, a serious case could put you out of pocket for thousands of pounds.
Will my home insurer cover me?
Most home insurers do not allow you to have short term guests at your property, such as house swappers, which they class as hire and reward or commercial activity. It is excluded under most policies. In the case of house swapping, many of the guests entering your property are from another country, which adds another layer of complexity. Most insurers that do say they are happy to keep your policy running are unlikely to cover you for vandalism, theft without forced entry, or third-party injury cover and legal expenses. Even if your insurer is ok with it, it’s vital to find out what they’re going to cover you for as it’s likely that this will be severely limited.
Consider alternative cover.
Inlet offers bespoke cover tailored to people taking advantage of the home swap experience. Not only can our buildings and contents accidental cover protect you for up to £800,000 and £75,000 respectively, we can also cover you for theft without forced entry, malicious damage, accidental damage and public liability and legal expenses cover as well. LoveHomeSwap should be commended for providing a measure of protection, as this is not the case with all House Swapping website. But if you’re not comfortable with their level of cover and your home insurance has some of the gaps we have discussed, consider taking out some extra piece of mind with us.
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