Many landlords think they have won when their existing broker agrees to match another quote.
On the face of it, that may seem reasonable. The landlord has received a renewal, checked the market, obtained a better price, gone back to the existing broker and secured a lower premium.
But there is a danger in stopping the conversation there.
A matched premium is not always a matched policy.
In landlord insurance, the price is only one part of the decision. What matters is whether the cover, excesses, exclusions, policy terms, claims support and overall suitability have also been properly compared.
If they have not, the landlord may be comparing numbers rather than protection.
The premium is only the headline
Insurance premiums are easy to compare.
One quote is £1,200. Another is £1,050. A broker offers to match or beat the lower figure. The decision can appear straightforward.
But landlord insurance is not that simple.
Two policies can have similar premiums but very different levels of cover. One may include stronger loss of rent protection. One may deal with malicious damage by tenants differently. One may have higher excesses. One may include endorsements or conditions that matter. One may be more suitable for the tenant type. One may be clearer on unoccupancy. One may offer better claims support.
The premium is the number landlords see first.
The policy detail is what matters when something goes wrong.
What exactly has been matched?
If your existing broker offers to match another quote, the first question should be:
What exactly are they matching?
Are they matching only the price?
Or are they matching the cover?
That distinction matters.
Landlords should ask whether the matched quote includes the same or better terms for:
- buildings cover
- contents cover, where required
- loss of rent
- malicious damage by tenants
- accidental damage
- liability cover
- legal expenses, if needed
- unoccupancy conditions
- excess levels
- claims support
- policy exclusions
- endorsements
- sum insured values
- tenant type
- portfolio structure
If those areas have not been compared, then the landlord does not really know whether the policy has been matched at all.
They only know the premium has.
Cheaper can mean different
A lower premium is not automatically a problem. NetRent and Clear work hard to help landlords obtain competitive landlord insurance.
But when a premium changes, landlords should understand why.
Has the insurer changed?
Has the excess increased?
Has a section of cover been removed?
Has an optional extension been excluded?
Has the sum insured been altered?
Has loss of rent cover reduced?
Are tenant-related risks dealt with differently?
Has the policy become less suitable for the property?
Sometimes a better price comes from better broking. That is good.
But sometimes a lower price reflects reduced cover or different assumptions. That needs to be checked.
The danger of using NetRent only as a bargaining tool
One of the most common frustrations in landlord insurance is when a landlord asks NetRent and Clear to obtain a competitive quote, then takes that quote back to their existing broker purely to negotiate a lower renewal.
The existing broker may then match the price.
But landlords should be careful before treating that as the end of the matter.
If the existing broker can suddenly offer a lower price, why was that not offered in the first place?
And if they are matching the price, have they also matched the policy?
Have they carried out the same level of review?
Have they asked the right landlord-specific questions?
Have they checked whether the cover remains suitable?
Have they properly reviewed the market?
A landlord should not reward a broker simply because they reacted after being challenged.
The better question is whether they were working hard enough before the challenge.
Proper review should happen before renewal
A good broker should not wait for a landlord to threaten to leave before reviewing the policy properly.
At renewal, the broker should be checking whether the landlord’s circumstances have changed, whether the cover remains suitable and whether the market can provide a better result.
That is one of the reasons NetRent works with Clear Insurance Management.
Clear do not simply roll landlord policies forward without proper consideration. On renewal, they re-broke the insurance to help ensure landlords are receiving the best available price and policy for their circumstances.
That approach matters because it recognises that renewal is not just an administrative exercise. It is an opportunity to check, challenge and improve the insurance position where possible.
Landlord insurance requires specialist questions
Landlord insurance is not just standard property insurance with a different name.
The right questions need to be asked.
Who occupies the property?
Has the tenant type changed?
Is the property fully occupied?
Has it been empty or partly empty?
Is the sum insured accurate?
Is loss of rent cover adequate?
Is malicious damage by tenants included on appropriate terms?
Have all material facts been disclosed?
Is the property part of a larger portfolio?
Are there HMOs, flats, commercial elements or unusual risks?
If these questions are not asked, the quote may not properly reflect the landlord’s real risk.
A matched premium based on poor information is not a good result.
Portfolio landlords should be especially careful
This is particularly important for landlords with multiple properties.
If you own five, ten, fifteen or more rental properties, your insurance arrangements should be reviewed as a portfolio. There may be different tenant types, different property values, different risk profiles and different cover requirements.
A small change in excess, loss of rent cover, malicious damage terms or sums insured can have a significant impact across a portfolio.
For portfolio landlords, the cheapest matched premium may not be the best long-term decision.
The right question is whether the policy provides suitable, competitive protection for the portfolio as a whole.
Do not assume the same price means the same protection
Insurance can look simple from the outside.
It is easy to compare one premium with another and assume that the lower figure is better.
But the detail matters.
A matched premium may hide weaker cover.
A cheaper policy may carry higher excesses.
A familiar broker may not have carried out a proper review.
A renewal notice may not prove that the landlord has the best available option.
That is why landlords should pause before accepting a matched price and ask whether the policy itself has genuinely been compared.
Contact NetRent before you renew
If your landlord insurance renewal is approaching, do not judge it on price alone.
Send your renewal to NetRent before you commit.
Let us review what you have been offered. Let us ask the right landlord-specific questions. Let us see whether Clear’s dedicated NetRent team can provide a competitive alternative that properly reflects your property or portfolio.
You may save money. You may improve your cover. You may also discover that what looked like a matched quote was not truly a matched policy.
Call NetRent: 01352 721300
Email: insurance@netrent.co.uk
A matched premium is not always a matched policy. Before you renew, send your landlord insurance renewal to NetRent.