Estimated Read: 5 minutes.
Many people may not realise that renting out their parking space for extra cash may not be covered by their home insurance if something happened and they needed to make a claim. Before you rent out your parking space, you may want to check with your insurer. Here are the important facts you need to know.
Many insurers won’t provide cover.
A survey of the UK’s biggest insurers revealed that many of them do not provide adequate buildings or contents insurance for claims caused as a result of customers renting out their parking space.
1/3 of home insurers in the UK we spoke to confirmed they would restrict cover for customers that rented out their parking space. If this applies to one of your insurers, key aspects of cover that you would normally expect to be covered for may be missing. However unlikely it is that something bad could happen, you could be taking an unnecessary risk without the right insurance.
If your home insurer does not provide any cover for your parking space, you may end up paying for property damage if your guest’s vehicle crashes into your home. You could be liable for injury damages if your guest drives into someone and be seriously out of pocket if liability cover is not provided.
Why don’t all insurers cover this?
Some insurers may class renting out your parking space as ‘commercial use’ and already exclude this type of activity in their terms and conditions.
Will I be covered by the parking website?
Many people that rent out their parking space do so through a parking website. The website itself may require guests to waive any responsibility if something happens. It is not clear however that you will be completely covered.
At the time of writing, parking websites do not provide specific cover for damage to your property. If your guest does not have car insurance and your home insurer will not cover you, that could leave you having to pay for damages.
Do I need specific insurance?
We would recommend you contact your insurer first and ask them if there is anything they are not prepared to cover you for. If you do not notify your insurer, they may cancel your policy or decide not to cover your claim. If you are not able to get adequate cover, a specialist provider like Pikl can provide cover if needed.
You will still need to speak to your insurer first to let them know you are intending to take out our cover. Alternatively, we can offer cover for your main home insurance as well as cover for renting out your parking space.
