As a property owner or landlord, you will need to get insurance for your property. Before a company insures the building, it will have to check whether your home is standard or non standard. All types of properties will qualify for home insurance, but non standard houses will usually have higher costs. In this guide, we will look at home insurance for non standard construction houses.
What is a house of non standard construction?
Houses are considered non standard if they are built of anything other than stone or brick and mortar. The construction of the roof will also determine whether a house has standard or non standard construction. Buildings with slate or tilted roofs are considered non standard. Here are some materials that are used to build non standard houses:
• Timber
• Concrete
• Cob
• Glass
• Clunch
• Pre-fab or modular
• BISF (steel framed, incorporating a number of prefabricated materials)
You can determine that a house has standard construction by checking for these building materials:
• Slate
• Tiles
• Brick
• Stones
Here are some building profiles that are considered non standard:
• Flat-roofed houses – These are considered non standard since they are more likely to leak and get damaged by water. In addition, thieves can easily access houses with flat roofs.
• Thatched houses – These houses are built of dry vegetation, and this could be straw, rushes, palm branches, heather, or water reed. These roofs can be expensive to repair and pose a higher risk of fire damage.
• Listed buildings – These buildings are usually more than 100 years old and are considered non standard. This is because they need traditional materials and construction methods.
• Homes with very high values – These houses also require non standard home insurance.
• Homes in flood risk places – Such homes expose insurers to greater risk, and this is why they have non standard home insurance.
• Prefabricated concrete houses – These houses were constructed around the 1950s and require non standard home insurance.
Can you change a non standard construction house?
It is possible to change a non standard construction house to a standard one. A simple way to do this is to change the non standard section of the house to standard. For example, you can replace the roofing of the house and change the frame. It is worth noting that converting a non standard home to standard can be very expensive. Still, it can have great benefits, including better insurance policies and higher resale prices. Standard houses are also much easier to sell.
What is a non standard property policy?
A non standard property policy is usually more expensive than regular home insurance. This is because the properties are more vulnerable to damage and may require ongoing maintenance. The materials used to build the house are also harder to obtain or make, and they may need a high level of skill to construct. Because of this, repairs made to the house will typically be costly.
Non standard property policies can include buildings insurance and home contents insurance. With buildings insurance, you will get coverage against damage by elements such as flood, fire, frozen pipes, and storms. Building add-ons will also be covered in this insurance plan. Some of these add-ons are gardens, swimming pools, accidental damage, and patios. Permanent fixtures like bathroom suites and fitted kitchens are also included in building insurance.
With home contents insurance, you will get coverage for everything in your house, except the building itself. Items that are commonly covered under home contents insurance plans include:
• Electrical items
• Gadgets
• Furniture
• Clothing
• Financial documents
• Bikes
• Jewellery
• Art collections
• Designer clothes
How do I know if my house is non standard construction?
To determine whether your house is non standard construction, you should first evaluate the construction of the roof and walls. If they are made of non standard materials, then you may need to pay higher premiums for the insurance cover. As mentioned earlier, standard construction houses are made of slate, bricks, tiles, and stones. Also, large homes are generally considered non standard.
Conclusion
When taking out insurance for your home, you will need to check whether your home is standard or non standard construction. Its classification will determine the cost of the policy. Non standard construction houses are usually more expensive to insure since they are expensive to repair. Also, they may be more prone to damage.
