Holiday home insurance Cyprus in 2024. What is holiday home insurance?
Holiday home insurance
Holiday homes are more prone to theft and serious damage from fire, flood and leakages, in comparison to permanent homes, due to the fact that they are left unoccupied for long periods.
In addition to the above, the influx of guests increases the likelihood of property damage.
Additionally, you are obliged to register your holiday home in the CTO if you rent it to acquire public liability insurance of €100,000.
In this guide, we will examine which types of insurance are provided for holiday homes in Cyprus and we will suggest ways of how to save money on your contract.
Table of contents
- What is holiday home insurance?
- Do I need holiday home insurance?
- Can I buy standard house insurance instead?
- What does holiday home insurance cover?
- What does holiday home insurance exclude?
- How can I save money on holiday home insurance?
- Who pays for damage to my holiday home?
- Holiday home insurance comparison
- Online holiday home insurance in Cyprus
- Cheap holiday home insurance in Cyprus
- Best holiday home insurance Cyprus
- How much is holiday home insurance?
- Holiday home insurance in Cyprus quote
What is holiday home insurance?
Holiday home insurance is tailor-made coverage specifically designed for people who own an additional property or holiday home and sometimes let it out.
The categorisation of additional and second homes includes different property types, such as houses, apartments, maisonettes, villas, and cottages.
Holiday home insurance includes buildings and contents insurance like standard home insurance. Like most home insurance, you can buy holiday home coverages individually or combine them with other coverages under one policy.
Holiday home insurance provides the following coverages:
- Building insurance
- Contents insurance
- Liability insurance (Public Liability insurance)
- Loss of rent or income cover
- Employers liability insurance
Buildings insurance covers the property’s structure, including the roof, doors, windows, floors, and walls. In addition, it includes permanent fixtures and fittings, such as drywalls and decorations.
Contents insurance covers your belongings inside the property, including furnishings, kitchen equipment, household appliances, electrical appliances, professional equipment, bicycles, jewelry and art pieces.
We will explain what these coverages contain in more depth below.
Do I need holiday home insurance in Cyprus?
Yes, you are legally required to buy holiday home insurance.
According to law, you need a minimum limit of public liability of €100,000, and you must get a licence from the CTO (Cyprus Tourism Organization) if you rent a property.
In addition, if you have a mortgage, your lender will probably insist you have insurance coverage for your building.
It’s worth remembering that banking institutions in Cyprus provide property insurance policies through their affiliate insurance companies. Nevertheless, these policies are about 5% - 15% more expensive than the average insurance policy.
In addition, you will be obliged to acquire insurance from an affiliate insurance company of the property developer (i.e., the construction company) if your holiday home is located in a multistory building or a complex.
By default, these contracts are more expensive than standard policies.
Banks and construction companies create the impression that acquiring an insurance policy from them is obligatory, but this is not the case. You have the right to choose a provider you want to work with.
Can I buy standard house insurance instead?
Standard house insurance won’t provide adequate cover for your holiday home.
Standard house insurance generally doesn’t cover homes that are left empty for longer than 30 consecutive days. In contrast, holiday home insurance can cover you for an unlimited time.
In addition, most standard house policies are unsuitable for a holiday homeowner’s needs as they don’t cover the risks of letting out your property to guests.
Holiday homes are more vulnerable to damage as they can be used by many guests and left unoccupied for long periods. Insurance for holiday homes covers those associated risks, whereas standard home insurance doesn’t.
In Cyprus, holiday home insurance policies are 10% - 15% cheaper than standard house insurance since holiday homes are not in use daily.
What does holiday home insurance cover?
Your holiday home can cover your unique needs as a second property owner. In general, holiday home insurance contains the following coverage.
Buildings insurance. Much like standard home insurance, buildings insurance covers the structure of the property against damage from events like earthquakes, vandalism, fire, storms, landslides and flooding. Cyprus is in a seismically active zone, since it lies at the junction of the Eurasian and African tectonic plates.
Holiday home building insurance also covers permanent fixtures like swimming pools, fitted bathrooms, and kitchens.
Contents insurance. Your holiday home contents insurance will cover your soft furnishings, furniture, electrical gadgets, home appliances, and any possessions in your holiday home.
Public liability insurance. Holiday home public liability insurance can protect you from liability against damages and accidents, such as injuries on your property.
Loss of income or rent. If you cannot let out your property due to covered damages caused by a fire, flood, or storm, loss of income or rent will cover your losses.
Some policies only cover income from pre-existing bookings, so it’s important to know what your policy covers and worth enquiring about the loss of income or rent: holiday let home insurance.
Employers liability insurance. Holiday home employer’s liability insurance is legally required of you if you employ any number of staff (such as cleaners or gardeners) registered with the social security authorities under your employer number.
This cover will help pay for legal fees and medical bills if your employees are injured while working for you in your holiday home.
Cyprus holiday home insurance
Depending on your holiday home policy and insurance provider, your insurance may also contain the following:
Alternative accommodation. This coverage will pay for alternative accommodation for your guests if your property is damaged and inhabitable.
Accidental and unexpected damage. This coverage will help pay for accidental or unexpected damages if you or a family member accidentally damages the home, such as spilling a drink on the carpet or breaking a window. However, it does not cover damage caused by guests.
Emergency travel expenses. If you have to unexpectedly travel to your holiday home for an emergency to resolve issues, emergency travel expenses coverage can cover the travel costs.
Legal fees and disputes. If you dispute a claim with tenants, legal fees and disputes can be covered by your additional holiday home insurance coverages.
Note: Some holiday home insurance provides the above as standard, whereas some will not, and you will need to buy these coverages separately as additional cover.
What does holiday home insurance exclude?
There are certain circumstances that standard holiday home insurance doesn’t cover.
Like any type of insurance policy, there may be exclusions to be mindful of. The following limits will vary depending on your provider and your chosen policy.
Some of the common exclusions include the following.
Extended lets. If guests want to extend their stay longer than your policy allows, you may need landlord insurance. If you want to know more about landlord insurance, you can see our article here.
In addition, the property has to be inspected by you at minimum once every seven days for your policy to remain active and valid.
Pet damage. Not all holiday home insurance will pay out for damage caused by pets. If you run a pet-friendly letting, you should check for this exclusion.
Stag and hen parties. Standard holiday home insurance excludes wedding parties. Furthermore, your policy may be invalidated if your guests invite others into the property.
Construction materials. Some exclusions apply to non-standard building materials. For example, if your holiday home is made of timber or wood, you might need specialised home insurance.
Accidental damage caused by guests. As mentioned above, coverage for accidental or unexpected damages only covers damage that you or a family member caused, but it does not cover damage caused by guests.
How can I save money on holiday home insurance?
Several methods can help you reduce the cost of your holiday home insurance.
For affordable holiday home insurance, consider making the following changes.
Improve security. Extra security measures such as installing smoke detectors and burglar alarms in your holiday home will help reduce your premiums.
In addition, providing guests with instructions about setting alarms or using any high-quality locks you have installed will help save money.
Home maintenance. Keeping your holiday home in good repair will reduce the risk of claims and can lower your insurance costs.
Deductibles and excess. Also known as a deductible, your excess is the amount you will pay for any insurance claim. By raising the excess of your policy, you will lower your premiums. Not all insurance providers allow you to change the excess of your policy.
Pay annually. You can usually reduce the cost of your insurance by paying upfront and annually rather than in instalments. Monthly instalments typically incur interest charges.
Combining policies. If cheap insurance is your main objective, buying buildings and contents insurance together under the same policy is usually cheaper. You can get deals by combining policies with the same insurer.
Who pays for damage to my holiday home?
Your holiday home will inevitably incur damages if you rent it out to guests, and it is unlikely that they will have insurance. As the property owner, it’s your responsibility to fully insure your property.
If your holiday home insurance covers accidental damage and a family member or friend accidentally breaks one of your possessions, you could make a claim. However, you must pay the excess, and your insurance premiums might increase when you renew your policy.
In that case, you should calculate whether the cost of claiming is worth the cost of the damage. If the claim is below your excess amount, it might not be worth your time.
An alternate option would be to ask for a deposit from your guests for potential damage.
You can assess the property for damage at the end of their stay and refund them as appropriate.
In the event that something gets broken by them, you could deduct an amount from their deposit.
Asking for a deposit can encourage your guests to care for the property while staying there, but it can put off some potential guests.
The other option is to pay for any damage yourself, but this could become unaffordable.
Accidental damage only applies if you or a family member cause the damage. The guest’s damage is not covered with holiday home insurance, so you may require additional coverage.
Holiday home insurance comparison
When comparing holiday home insurance, there will be all-risk or named perils contracts to consider. It’s important to know what their differences are.
All-risk contracts cover all risks and perils (the policy doesn’t specifically exclude) with few limitations. These contracts are also known as open perils policies.
In contrast, named perils contracts explicitly name the risks and perils they cover. These policies only cover the events listed in the contract. Therefore, many perils may not be covered.
For example, a named perils policy that covers damages from unexpected fires won’t pay for an unprecedented flood. In contrast, an all-risk contract may include both risks in one policy.
When you receive holiday home insurance quotes, your needs will be assessed by underwriters who will determine the risks of insuring your holiday home.
Only international underwriters provide all-risk contracts. However, Cyprus cooperates with local and international underwriters.
At Pitsas Insurances, we work with both local and international underwriters, enabling us to find our clients the best holiday home insurance.
Online holiday home insurance in Cyprus
You aren’t required to visit our offices to buy an insurance contract.
At Pitsas Insurances, we provide all of our insurance services online and you are able to receive quotations and insurance contracts from us within a matter of minutes.
To acquire holiday home insurance, you will receive an electronic application form from us which is electronically signable.
After receiving your details from you, we can work on preparing your personalised quote. If you have any questions throughout the process, you can arrange a free online video call with us.
Once you want to proceed with your quote, you can email us, and once we get your confirmation, we finalise your contract and send it to you via email.
Cheap holiday home insurance in Cyprus
Our basic insurance packages are the cheapest contracts you will find in Cyprus, which include basic coverages such as fire and theft.
Our consultants can analyse your needs, without your obligation to purchase a contract, to help you find the insurance coverages you really want.
Firstly, the most important thing for us to do is to provide you with the correct contract.
If you are enquiring about your second home which you rent for a few months at a time, then you need holiday home insurance and not home insurance.
The cheapest contract is sometimes the one that is the most costly since it excludes risks that are most likely to occur.
For example, contracts sold in Cyprus must include fire, theft and earthquake risks.
Best holiday home insurance Cyprus
Pitsas Insurances can help you find the best holiday home insurance in Cyprus.
If you are on a tight budget, we will help you find the cheapest holiday home insurance.
Some of the advantages of our policies are:
- Our contracts have the lowest number of exclusions.
- We can offer a low excess rate on earthquakes. Earthquakes are the most common natural disaster in Cyprus, and most insurers raise the excesses exclusively for earthquakes leading to redundant expenses, while some do not allow excess changes.
- We cover theft even in negligence cases (i.e., you forgot to close the windows or even the door of your home).
- We have the highest claim handling satisfaction ratio. Our proposal forms are designed fairly to avoid trapping customers. We do not require clients to declare everything in the highest detail on the application form. For example, some insurance companies will not compensate you for damage to photovoltaic panels, antennas, or garden furniture if you don’t explicitly state their value on the application form.
- We cover more than damage costs. If your pipes break, we cover the damage costs and any associated expenses related to detecting this damage.
- We use independent valuators to assess the risk on properties. Their opinion is more objective and often favours the client more than most insurance companies’ affiliated valuators.
We have the largest selection of home insurance products in Cyprus and we have dedicated home insurance packages for expatriates.
Our packages have the lowest deductible rates and we do not have higher deductible rates for earthquake damages.
Our insurance packages are comprehensive, covering risks that are not covered by other packages (such as landslides).
In addition, we have the highest claim satisfaction ratio, making us one of the best choices in Cyprus. 95% of claims we receive are compensated and 90% of those claims are paid within 10 working days. We also provide free advice on how to handle claims.
Key takeaways
Holiday home insurance is specifically designed for people who own a second property and sometimes let it out.
Like most home policies, holiday home insurance includes buildings and contents insurance.
Most holiday home insurance won’t cover all circumstances, so you should check your policy for limits and exclusions.
Carrying the right holiday home insurance for your needs is essential, as you are liable for the damages your property sustains.
Pitsas Insurances can help you to find the best Cyprus holiday home insurance.
How much is holiday home insurance?
The overall cost of holiday home insurance depends on how much coverage you need and what types are required to protect your holiday home.
In summary, the following factors typically affect the cost of insurance for holiday homes.
- Total rebuild cost
- The total value of insured contents
- Monthly rental income cost
- Built-up area and any renovation expenses
- Year of construction (or the age of the building)
- Property construction materials (e.g., stone)
- Previous and current claims history
Holiday home insurance Cyprus quote
Without the correct holiday home insurance coverage, you could face unnecessary financial problems in the event of theft or damage.
Pitsas Insurances offers tailored holiday home insurance policies in Cyprus to suit every need.
Holiday home insurance in Cyprus quote
For more information about home insurance, please visit our website.
To get a personalised quote for holiday home insurance in Cyprus, complete our questionnaire.
Pitsas Insurances is part of Amazon Group Services. We work with many civil engineers who can help you roughly estimate the rebuild value of your property.
Pitsas Insurances Team