Let’s say that your parents passed away and left their house to you, but they died just before the winter holiday season. If you lived alone at home during the holiday season, did not leave to go live with relatives or friends or anyone else, and then returned home after the new year, your house would not be considered occupied.
In the unfortunate circumstance of someone passing away and their house left unoccupied for a period of time, it would be essential that the person dealing with the administration of the estate manages to arrange cover with an unoccupied property insurance policy.
What is Probate?
Probate is the legal procedure for proving a will and distributing a deceased person’s assets according to that will. The process of probate can vary greatly depending on the state or country where the individual lived, as well as the value of assets involved.
Why is Probate Necessary?
Individuals often hold significant assets during their lives, including real estate, bank accounts, personal belongings, vehicles and investments. Without guidance from an owner after death, these assets are typically controlled by local law. A probate proceeding provides legal notice to interested parties that may be entitled to inherit portions of those assets. It also acts as a time-sensitive mechanism for transferring ownership of a property either before or following an owner’s death.
Unoccupied Property Insurance During Probate
Probate itself, however, is time-consuming and expensive. Many individuals choose to avoid probate by creating a will that names an executor for their estate. By naming someone other than themselves as the sole owner of property held by the deceased, many assets may be transferred without probate court proceedings.
However, this option does not apply to all types of assets. For instance, jointly owned properties created with rights of survivorship pass directly to the co-owners without being subject to probate or any other form of transfer on death designation.
Other exceptions exist as well. A person holding power of attorney over another may also inherit some assets formerly owned by that person automatically upon their death depending on state law.
What is Unoccupied Home Insurance and why is it needed?
Unoccupied Property Insurance or unoccupied home insurance is a type of insurance policy that protects the building itself, contents, belongings and other possessions in your apartment.
This does not require you to be living in your place all the time because of having this special insurance coverage. Unoccupied home insurance can be a sound investment for people who have lots of properties and they want to insure all of them under one home insurance policy
Unoccupied home insurance comes with a higher premium compared to ordinary houses because of the increased risk involved which is usually high for properties that remain unoccupied for long periods of time.
Unforeseen circumstances can cause damage to your home while you are away on holiday or vacation. Unoccupied Property Insurance cover will provide reimbursement for repairs due to certain events like storms, floods, fire, theft or vandalism.
Owning an unoccupied home insurance policy is a great way to protect yourself against any dangers and potential problems.
In the UK, as of 2020, there were an estimated 25,000 empty homes in London alone, which was the highest number since 2012 according to government statistics. During that time, it is likely that many people would have passed away and when left unoccupied for a long period, that property will be susceptible to being damaged due to natural disasters. Therefore, it is important to act quickly and help ease the burden of the executor of the estate.
