Homeowner buildings insurance

Places for People owns the freehold of your home. This means we are legally responsible for arranging buildings insurance for the entire building, including your home and any shared areas like stairwells, roofs, and entrances.  

Because of this legal responsibility, as a shared owner or leaseholder, you cannot arrange your own buildings insurance for the structure or communal parts. This is a legal requirement included in your lease.  

We arrange this insurance to:  

• Ensure every home has the right and consistent cover. 
• Avoid gaps or duplicate insurance policies. 
• Meet our legal duty to protect the building, including your part of it.  

By insuring all homes together, we can often negotiate better prices and more comprehensive cover for everyone.  

We work with Zurich Municipal, an insurance company experienced in insuring homes owned by housing associations like Places for People. They offer a policy designed specifically for homes like yours.

The insurance protects the structure of your home and shared areas, including:  

• Fire, lightning, explosions, and aircraft damage 
• Storms, flooding, and escape of water (such as leaks from pipes) 
• Damage caused by vehicles or animals 
• Falling trees or branches 
• Theft or attempted theft involving forced entry 
• Subsidence (damage caused by the ground shifting) 
• Accidental damage to fixed glass, pipes, and cables 
• And other similar risks  

Important: This insurance does not cover your personal belongings inside your home, like furniture, clothing, electronics, or other personal belongings. For those, you will need separate contents insurance, which you are responsible for.  

Here’s how we work out your insurance cost each year:  

1. We start with a list of all homes needing insurance. 
2. We adjust the rebuilding cost estimate each year to account for inflation and rising costs. 
3. Zurich Municipal applies their rate to this updated rebuilding cost. 
4. We add the Government’s Insurance Premium Tax (12%). 
5. This gives the total insurance charge for each home.  

No. Zurich Municipal is a direct insurer, so there are no broker fees or admin charges added. You only pay the insurance cost plus the 12% Insurance Premium Tax.  

No. As the UK’s leading Social Enterprise, we do not make any profit. You only pay the exact cost we pay to the insurer to cover your home.

We know this is one of the biggest concerns for our Customers, so here’s a clear explanation of why premiums can go up or down:  

Claims across all homes 

The insurance cost is influenced by claims made across all homes in the policy. While claims experience is one factor in calculating the premium, the overall rate also considers other elements such as risk assessments, market conditions, and the insurer’s pricing models. Therefore, claims are only one part of how premiums are determined.  

Rising costs of repairs and materials  

Prices for building materials (like timber, bricks, and steel) and labour keep going up. This means it costs more to fix or rebuild homes when there is damage. Insurance premiums reflect these higher costs to make sure repairs can be paid for properly.  

More frequent severe weather  

Due to climate change, storms, flooding, and other severe weather events are happening more often. This increases the likelihood of damage. Insurers adjust premiums to reflect this greater risk and to protect your home.  

Higher rebuilding costs  

Over time, the estimated cost to fully rebuild your home increases. This can be due to inflation, changes to building regulations, or improvements in building standards. Premiums rise accordingly to make sure your home is fully covered.  

Wider market conditions  

Insurance companies operate in a complex, global market. Economic changes, new regulations, or their own business results can affect how much they charge. These factors affect all insurance providers and are outside Places for People’s control.  

In the past, insurance premiums for social housing were lower than they should’ve been and didn’t keep pace with rising claim costs. Today, premiums are starting to reflect the changing risks, rising inflation, and other economic pressures that housing associations face.  

Premiums are affected by things like the number of claims made, the value and type of properties, where they’re located, and even global events. Lately, the worldwide increase in material and labour costs has pushed up the cost of claims, which is causing premiums to rise even more.  

These reasons affect insurance prices across the entire market. Many people are seeing insurance premiums increase for the same reasons. Because we insure all our homes together, we often secure better prices and protect you from bigger price swings than if you insured separately.  

We understand that insurance costs can feel confusing or frustrating, so we want to be open about the steps we take to keep prices as fair and reasonable as possible:  

Careful choice of insurance provider  

We select our insurer through a thorough, competitive tender process. This means we get quotes and carefully compare them to make sure we secure the best value — balancing cost, coverage, and service. Our current provider, Zurich Municipal, was chosen this way in 2020 and will be reviewed again in 2027.  

We invite insurers to take part in our tender process. The contract goes to the insurer who offers the most competitive bid and meets all the requirements.  

Regular policy reviews  

Each year, we review the insurance policy details and market conditions with Zurich Municipal. This helps us ensure the cover remains appropriate and competitive, and that we’re not paying for unnecessary extras or gaps in cover. 

The tender is awarded for a fixed term. We cannot change insurers during this long-term agreement (LTA) without conducting a new tender, which can take a long time - up to 12 months.  

Pooling risks for better rates  

By insuring all shared ownership homes together in one policy, we spread the risk across many properties. This approach usually results in lower premiums than individual policies could achieve because costs and claims are shared fairly.  

Transparent charges without hidden fees  

You only pay the exact cost of the insurance premium plus the Government Insurance Premium Tax (IPT). We do not add any admin, broker fees, or profit margin. Zurich Municipal is a direct insurer, so there are no extra fees passed on to you.  

If you want official confirmation or documentation about this, please ask your property management team, and they will provide evidence to reassure you that all charges are transparent and only cover the actual insurance cost.  

Detailed estimates and regular updates  

We provide you with an estimated insurance charge well before the financial year starts, so you can plan your finances. Once the actual premium is confirmed, we let you know this amount by sending it to you.    

Monitoring claims trends  

We carefully monitor claims made across our homes. If claims increase, we work with Zurich Municipal to understand the causes and look for ways to manage risk better — for example, by advising on property maintenance or improvements.  

Leaseholders are responsible for maintaining their individual properties, so we cannot require them to carry out maintenance or improvements. However, for blocks of flats where Places for People is responsible for the exterior and roof, we can manage and undertake necessary maintenance.  

Responding to market changes  

We keep a close eye on wider insurance market trends, inflation, and changes in building costs. While some factors are outside our control, we aim to respond quickly and responsibly to keep costs reasonable without compromising cover.   

Supporting you through questions and concerns  

If you have questions about your insurance charges or need help understanding changes, your Community Housing Manager is here to assist. We want you to feel confident and informed about what you’re paying for.  

(For insurance claim queries, please contact our Insurance Team on 01772 897292 or 01772 897298 or email insurance.help@placesforpeople.co.uk)

The need for buildings insurance and potential charges is explained in your lease agreement. If you’re unsure about what was told to you during purchase, please check your lease or contact our sales team for clarification. 

Paying your insurance charge is a legal requirement of your lease. If you don’t pay, we may have to take legal action. If you are worried about paying, please contact us — we want to help you find a solution.  

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact your property management team. We want to make sure you understand your insurance clearly and feel supported.  

If you would like, we can also provide detailed documents explaining how your premium is calculated and confirm that no admin or broker fees are added.