Tenants Want Mobile Coverage, Landlords Going Without Insurance

A study has been carried out by network testing company Rootmetrics, the findings of which demonstrate the importance of mobile coverage to tenants when choosing a property.

Over half (54%) of the over 2,000 people surveyed said that they would not buy a property if they found it had poor mobile reception. The proportion was found to be 64% in London.

Surveying adults (which they have defined as 16 and over) revealed that 46% of tenants would not rent a property if it had poor mobile phone coverage. Rootmetrics CEO Bill Moore said, “While there are obviously more important considerations when it comes to weighing the pros and cons of a house move, there’s no doubt that mobile phone coverage is becoming a factor in the decision-making process.”

Recent studies have also shown that landline use is down, and looks set to reduce further. Ofcom found that calls from landlines fell by more than 10% from the previous year and that 15% of homes in the UK are now mobile-only.

In a separate study by research company fast.MAP, it was found that 37% of UK consumers would be willing to do away with landlines altogether.

Just under 240 landlords were interviewed about their costs last month in a study by Direct Line for Business, which revealed that nearly one in five landlords do not have specialist insurance, instead opting for cheaper standard home insurance policies, mistakenly hoping that they cover rental properties.

Landlords were found to run up average annual costs of £8,256 from their rental portfolios. The average respondent’s portfolio was found to consist of 5.3 properties and pull an annual income of £94,344.

Repairs proved to be the most costly expense over the year, with materials and labour costs amounting to £2,848 on average. Landlord insurance was found to be the second costliest expense for landlords, the average being set back £1,329 (1.4% of the gross average rental income). However, 18% of respondents did not have any specialised landlord insurance.

Jazz Gakhal, head of Direct Line for Business, said, “It’s vital that landlords get the right cover for their properties.

“You are unlikely to be covered in a standard home insurance policy, and there are many valuable extras available, including rental income protection if your property is uninhabitable due to an insured event such as a fire or a flood.


“A good landlord’s policy will also include public liability insurance, also known as property owner’s liability insurance, as standard, as you could be held liable for injuries on your property or damage to neighbouring property.”

Other costs incurred by landlords included letting agent and property management fees, accounting for just over one-fifth of total expenditure, with letting agents taking 8.9% of the total and property management firms taking 12.6%. 

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