When someone dies and a property is no longer occupied, it’s really important to consider insurance needs.
Often, the property is the biggest asset of an estate – the thing with the most value.
If something happens to the property, the executors, who are legally responsible for taking care of an estate, are personally liable.
Think about that for a moment. If there’s a fire, a flood or some devastating catastrophe, then if you’re named in the Will as the executor, that may mean that you have to come up with the funds to put it right if it’s not insured correctly.
Your first thought may be that the person who died, would have had insurance in place. That may be true. But the insurance which covers a person’s home while they live in it, while they keep it well maintained, while that person is there to check things and alert someone if a pipe bursts, is different insurance to the unoccupied insurance which covers all eventualities at an empty property.
If you’re not sure whether the property insurance needs to be updated, please take action to find out.
You may be really glad you did.
Sometimes, it can be handled by the legal team that takes care of the estate administration, along with obtaining the Grant of Probate. Sometimes it’s not included unless you specifically ask for it.
The point is to stay alert to the issue, and make sure that whatever needs to be done, is sorted.
If you have any questions arising from this article, please feel free to call Jane on 01727 840 240 or drop her a line at Jane@jcwillsandprobate.co.uk to set up a time to discuss your own situation.