Ten Tips to Reduce Risks and Protect your Property in a Heatwave
With temperatures soaring to record highs, what can landlords do to reduce risks and protect their property? Steve Barnes, Associate Director at NRLA insurance partners, Total Landlord Insurance, shares his ten top tips for landlords, as we face the reality that extreme heat fuelled by climate change is making heatwaves more intense, frequent and likely.
At Total Landlord Insurance we’ve noticed not only that claims are very seasonal, but that certain claims are on the rise. Property insurance exists to protect landlords from the seemingly unpredictable, but the truth is, we can often predict when and where landlords are most at risk.
Here are our ten top tips based on the increase in the type of claims we see during and in the aftermath of a heatwave.
1. Protect your pipes
People tend to assume burst pipes are a winter problem. And it’s true that uninsulated pipes are prone to freezing, causing water inside to expand and bursting the pipe. But while water expands when frozen, metal expands in heat. With temperatures rising, we’re seeing more burst pipes in summer than ever, where the heat from the sun is warping pipes and expanding them beyond capacity – causing a fracture. Be sure to maintain pipes so that they can withstand hot temperatures, as well as cold. Find out more in our NRLA guide to preventing burst pipes in your rental property.
2. Check your gutters and drains
We all know that storms and torrential downpours follow a heatwave, and with dry ground unable to absorb the sudden deluge of water, it’s vital that gutters and drains are kept clear. The devastating impact of surface flooding caused by unpredictable weather and torrential rain, has become a familiar sight across the UK. Drainage systems can very quickly become overwhelmed during a sudden downpour, causing groundwater to rise. And when the ground becomes saturated, the resulting excess surface water can cause devastating damage to properties, sometimes making them completely uninhabitable. Flood claims, which spike sharply following a storm, have been increasing year on year with the rise in named storms. With unsettled and extreme weather becoming more frequent, and the typical cost for fully repairing a flooded home somewhere between £20,000 and £45,000, find out what landlords should be doing to prepare their properties and make sure they’re covered for flooding in our NRLA guide to protecting your property from flooding.
3. Move mirrors away from sunlight and draw the curtains
Mirrors can magnify heat received from the sunlight and that can cause a fire if it gets projected onto other objects. It's not something many of us would even consider, but exceptionally hot weather brings on more unusual claims. Recently, we had a claim from a landlord whose curtains had been set on fire after the sun's rays reflected off the window. The heat even burnt the plastic window frames. In a similar case, a tenant left a magnifying mirror in the bedroom next to a mirror, and again the sun reflected off the mirror through the window, burning a large hold in the frame. In extremely hot weather it's a good idea to keep curtains drawn - at the very least this will prevent the strong sun from discolouring furniture and carpets. We also advise people not to put up garden mirrors, as these too have been known to cause fires.
4. Make sure you’re covered for accidental damage
Forewarned is forearmed - we know from analysing our claims data that accidental damage claims peak during the summer months when children are off school and tenants spend more time at home. It may unintentional, but the impact of accidental damage is inconvenient and can be expensive to fix. Whether it’s a child kicking a ball through the window or a tenant leaving the tap running and flooding the property, it’s the landlord’s responsibility to pay for any repairs needed as a result. So, it is important to make sure you have comprehensive cover, as well as doing all you can to reduce the chances of accidental damage occurring in the first place. Some policies, like Total Landlord Insurance, include accidental damage as standard, but many do not. Read our NRLA guide to accidental damage insurance to find out more.
5. Look out for invasive species such as Japanese Knotweed in the garden
Weeds thrive in hot weather, so it’s important that tenants are aware of their responsibilities for keeping them under control and alerting you if there is anything to be concerned about. Look out for invasive species such as Japanese Knotweed that become more virulent during hot spells. There has been much debate in recent times about how harmful Japanese Knotweed really is – while it is widely thought that it can penetrate concrete, this is actually untrue – but the way it takes hold is by taking advantage of structural weaknesses. So, it’s important to know how to spot it, combat it and, most importantly, to stay on the right side of the law. Read our ultimate guide to Japanese Knotweed to find out more.
6. Beware of turning a heatwave into a crimewave
Understandably, during hot weather tenants will want to open doors and windows to keep their homes cool. But this obviously creates potential opportunities for ‘walk-in’ or ‘reach-in’ thefts, which are more common in the summer months. So how can tenants keep cool without jeopardising property security? Advise tenants to only leave windows open for ventilation when they are in the room and lock them when they leave the house. And ask them not to leave windows open, even on upper floors, if they are next to a porch or a flat garage roof which can be used to climb onto. It’s also a good idea to fit window opener restrictors. Our NRLA guide to protecting your property from break-ins contains lots of useful information, including tips for keeping your property secure while your tenants are on holiday.
7. Make sure you’re covered for malicious damage
Criminal damage to property tends to go up in summer, and at Total Landlord Insurance we have noticed that malicious damage claims peak during the summer months too. This year, police issued alerts for expected increases in vandalism and anti-social behaviour linked to the heatwave and cost of living crisis. No landlord wants to discover that their windows have been smashed or their walls daubed in graffiti. Malicious damage is reported to be one of the top three most common insurance claims for landlords in the UK (although not at Total Landlord Insurance, thankfully). That said, we paid out an average of £6,127 for malicious damage over the last five years, the third highest average claim amount. So, it’s well worth checking your landlord insurance and adding it to your policy if you’re not covered. Malicious damage is included in Total Landlord Insurance’s Premier policy as standard. Find out more about protecting your property from malicious damage in our NRLA guide to protecting your property from malicious damage.
8. Spot the signs of subsidence
Triggered by significant heatwaves, as well as building surveys relating to house sales, subsidence claims increased by a whopping 49 per cent in the year to July 2021. Yet worryingly, 51 per cent of homeowners don’t know what the signs of subsidence are, or falsely identify it. Damage caused by subsidence can be expensive to fix – our most costly claim was for £71,800! The key thing is to take action straight away as the longer subsidence is left, the more expensive repairs are likely to be. To find out more about how you can spot the signs and avoid that sinking feeling, read our NRLA guide to subsidence.
9. Barbecues and balconies - fire safety starts at home
As the recent heatwave highlighted, with wildfires spreading to nearby homes, soaring temperatures increase the risks of fire, both inside and outside the home. It’s vital that landlords make fire safety a priority throughout the year and tenant education is key. But it’s up to the landlord to carry out regular portable appliance testing, make sure all gas fittings are well maintained and that annual gas safety checks are carried out. During the summer months, the risks change - fire brigades across the UK issued warnings during the recent heatwave, urging people to minimise risks of grass blazes by making sure to throw away glass bottles, which can start fires by magnifying the sun’s rays, and keeping a bucket of water or sand near the barbecue (and avoiding barbecues in extremely hot weather). In the last five years, London’s firefighters have attended almost 600 fires involving barbecues, 45 of which were on private balconies. Tenants should never barbecue on a balcony as embers can carry and set alight to neighbours’ properties. And gas grills are not without risk – barbecue gas bottles can explode when exposed to intense heat for a long period of time. Remind tenants to keep them out of direct sunlight and store them in a cool place. Find out more about fire safety all year round in our NRLA guide to protecting your property from fire.
10. Prevent pest problems
Summer is the season for pests. But how do landlords prevent pests in their property? Sometimes, problems with the property can lead to issues with pests and vermin, for example rats, mice, cockroaches, ants, and wasps. As a landlord, you are responsible for dealing with making sure the property is ‘fit for human habitation’ and in a good state of repair. If there is a pest infestation in your property as a result of something you did or failed to do, the chances are you’ll be responsible for dealing with it. But tenants have a part to play too. It’s particularly important during very hot weather to remind tenants to dispose of rubbish properly to reduce the risk of attracting pests such a rats. During the summer, tenants are more likely to spend time outside eating and drinking, and this can also attract wasps. Wasps in properties can affect the health and safety of tenants and impact the brickwork, so it’s important for landlords to be well-informed. Check your insurance policy covers removal of wasps nests (which Total Landlord Insurance’s Premier policy does), and read our guest blog from the British Pest Control Association for more information on what landlords can do when it comes to dealing with wasps.
Soaring summer temperatures and their aftermath bring extra challenges for landlords and tenants. But prevention is always better than cure – a note to tenants around this time of year to remind them of the extra precautions they need to take could go a long way towards lessening the risks. It’s also an opportunity to check in with them, particularly if your tenants are elderly or have babies, to make sure they have all they need, perhaps offering them a spare fan to help keep them cool.
And finally, now is a good time to check your landlord insurance to make sure you are covered for the specific risks that summer brings. It’s impossible to know for certain what the future will bring, but it’s likely that this year’s heatwave will not be the last.
