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In this article
Why you can trust our landlord insurance reviews
Experiences of real landlords
We asked 842 landlords to score their insurer.
Expert analysis
We rated 116 elements of each policy.
Landlord insurance is similar to home insurance, but it's specifically designed to cover rental properties.
The three main types of landlord insurance are buildings, contents and liability insurance. Beyond these, there are various add-ons you may find useful, depending on the type of property you're letting.
You'll usually take out insurance on a property-by-property basis. Portfolio policies are available to landlords who own several rented homes and want to insure them all at the same time.
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We looked at nine landlord insurance providers and 12 policies.
Use the 'landlord insurance policies' tab to find out how the policies scored for buildings insurance, content insurance, rent cover, liability, excess and other factors and which three our experts think are Best Buys.
Switch to the 'landlord insurance companies' tab to discover how customers rated the providers on customer service, transparency of charges, value for money and more.
Which? members can log in to see the results of our analysis. If you're not already a member, join Which? and get full access to these results and all our reviews.
Tables notes: scores last updated July 2025. Next update July 2027.
Total policy score: is calculated based on individual components of cover within policies, which are weighted as follows: buildings 40%, contents 20%, liability 20%, rent cover 10%, excess 5% and other factors 5% (weighting is based on how important each component is to landlords).
Customer score: based on an online survey of 842 Which? Connect panel members and members of the public in April and May 2025 who have landlord insurance. The score is a combined score based on customer ratings of satisfaction with the retailer and likelihood of recommending it. n/a - provider didn't get a large enough sample in our customer survey to receive a customer score. Minimum of 30 respondents needed to generate a star rating.
*Other factors include admin charges for setting up, renewing, adjusting or cancelling your policy, interest for paying monthly and charges for defaulting on payments.
Find out more about how we analyse landlord insurance.
Insurance isn't as simple as 'one size fits all', and there are various add-ons and different types of cover landlords can opt for.
Buildings insurance covers damage to the structure of your property, as well as the cost of rebuilding the home if it's irreparably damaged.
You generally won't be able to take out a buy-to-let mortgage without proof of buildings insurance, and most lenders will specify the minimum level of cover they require in their terms and conditions.
If the property is a flat within a block, buildings insurance will usually be part of a shared block policy, which you'll pay for as part of your service charge.
Buildings insurance policies typically offer cover against the following types of damage:
There may be gaps in buildings cover when it comes to damage that originates within individual flats – such as a fire or water leak. For this reason, it's very important to check exactly what's covered within the policy and to consider taking out your own landlord policy to cover any exemptions.
Contents insurance can usually be taken out as a standalone policy or as an add-on to buildings insurance. The level of contents insurance you'll need depends on whether you're letting a furnished or unfurnished property.
A contents insurance policy will cover the cost of repairing or replacing fixtures and fittings such as carpets, furniture and electrical items if, for example, they're damaged in a flood. Some policies can also be extended to cover accidental damage to items.
Landlord contents insurance policies only pay out on items in the property that you've provided. Anything that belongs to your tenants, from everyday belongings to furniture, won't be covered, so tenants should take out their own policy too.
Liability insurance covers you if your tenant or a visitor suffers an injury on your property.
Also known as public liability cover, this insurance protects you financially against unforeseen accidents, but shouldn't be considered an excuse not to make the property as safe as possible for your tenants.
Liability insurance policies often have extremely high coverage limits stretching to millions of pounds, which could be necessary if you're held legally responsible for an accident and need to pay compensation.
Rent guarantee insurance (otherwise known as tenant default insurance or rent receivable insurance) protects you if your tenant falls into arrears.
There are many reasons why your tenant might default on their payments, such as losing their job or struggling with the cost of living.
That's why rent guarantee insurance can come in handy as missed payments will be covered. It also usually includes legal expenses cover, which covers the costs of repossession and eviction proceedings if required.
When included in a policy, rent guarantee insurance is usually offered as an optional extra.
Rent guarantee is not to be confused with loss of rent insurance, which provides cover for lost rental income during a claim if the property isn't habitable during that period.
Loss of rent is usually covered under a standard landlord building insurance policy. Rent guarantee, however, normally needs to be added on.
Home emergency cover offers round-the-clock cover against loss of essential services in your property.
These policies cover the cost of repairs and should enable you to get services up and running quickly.
Home emergency cover usually offers protection against the following issues:
However, past research by Which? has found that some home emergency policies contain exclusions that can undermine the value of the cover, so make sure you read the small print before taking out a policy.
There are several ways you can find and buy landlord insurance, including:
As with any financial product, you should always shop around and compare quotes. If you're unsure, take independent advice before rushing in.
The amount you'll pay for landlord insurance depends on a whole host of factors, including your claim history and the age and history of the property itself.
Other factors include:
Membership of a landlord accreditation scheme may entitle you to a discount from some insurers.
Insurance documents can be confusing, especially if you're not familiar with the terminology.
Some of the keywords and phrases you'll need to get your head around when choosing a policy, are:
If you need to make a claim, you should contact your insurer directly. It's important to do this as soon as possible, as waiting too long could result in the claim being rejected.
Once you've filed a claim, you'll need to provide evidence of what, when and how the issue occurred and what it will cost to rectify.
You should provide your insurer with any documents that could help it, including photos, estimates for repairs, invoices and any police report reference numbers if applicable.
How long it will take your insurer to investigate the claim and respond can vary, so check the conditions of your policy.
Our editorial independence means we can work on behalf of you, the consumer, rather than insurers. That means our reviews are unbiased and there's no hidden agenda.
This is based on a survey of 842 landlord insurance policyholders. The score reflects how satisfied customers say they are with their provider and how likely they would be to recommend it.
Insurers must receive a minimum of 30 customer responses to be included.
In June 2025, we analysed 12 landlord insurance policies. We rated 116 elements of each policy. The higher the policy score, the better the cover.
When compiling the total policy score, we weight different components of the policy based on how important each part of the policy is to landlords. Buildings cover has the highest weighting (40%). The other weightings are: contents 20%, liability 20%, rent cover 10%, excess 5% and other factors 5%.
This analysis is carried out every two years. The next update will be in July 2027.
Best Buys are awarded to policies that stand out in our analysis as offering particularly high levels of cover. We won't give a Best Buy to a provider with evidence of poor customer service, from our customer satisfaction survey or from Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) data.
Best Buy policies require:
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