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Property and letting
If you take a property from an owner, pay them a fixed rent and let the rooms yourself, you need your own insurance: usually property owners’ liability, contents for what you furnish, and often legal expenses and loss of rent. The building itself is normally insured by the owner, and that policy has to know about you. Professional indemnity only comes into it if you manage or let property for other owners. This page covers rent-to-rent in England.
Part of: Landlord insurance
In short
In a rent-to-rent arrangement the owner usually keeps the buildings policy and the operator insures its own liability to occupiers and the public, its furniture and its income. Most problems start when the owner’s insurer was never told that a company is subletting rooms, or when an HMO licence lapses. Since 1 May 2026 a rent repayment order can be made against a superior landlord as well as the immediate landlord, reversing the effect of Rakusen v Jepsen for offences from that date. Liability and PI wordings commonly exclude fines, penalties and rent repayment orders, so compliance is your protection there, not insurance.
Last reviewed 6 October 2026 by the Apex commercial team.
The owner insures the bricks and mortar; you insure your liability, your contents and your income. The gaps sit where the two policies meet.
A rent-to-rent operator sits between the owner and the occupiers. You hold a lease or management agreement, pay the owner a fixed rent, and let rooms or the whole property, often as a house in multiple occupation (HMO) or serviced accommodation. To the occupiers you are usually the landlord; to the owner you are the tenant or manager.
| Cover | Who usually holds it | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Buildings | The owner | The insurer knows a company is subletting, how the property is occupied, and whether your interest is noted. |
| Property owners’ liability (public liability for landlords) | You, the operator | It names you and covers the occupancy you actually run at each address. |
| Contents in furnished rooms and common areas | You, if you supplied the furniture | The owner’s policy will not usually cover what you bought. |
| Loss of rent after insured damage | Both, for different losses | The owner’s policy protects the rent you pay them; yours needs to protect the higher rent you collect. |
| Legal expenses | You | Whether it covers disputes with occupiers, with the owner, or both. |
| Employers’ liability | You, if you have staff | Cleaners and maintenance workers can count as employees. |
| Professional indemnity | You, if you manage or let for other owners | That the policy describes your actual activities. |
All cover is subject to the insurer’s acceptance and the policy terms. Rent-to-rent can be harder to place than an ordinary let, so start early.
Most uninsured losses in rent-to-rent come from something nobody told the insurer, rather than from a missing policy.
The examples below are illustrative. They show the kinds of situation that come up in rent-to-rent, not real claims or outcomes.
Insurers and tribunals ask the same question: who controlled the property, and what did the law require of them?
| Rule | What the text says | What it means for an operator |
|---|---|---|
| Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013, ss.83–84; Redress Schemes Order 2014 | Anyone doing lettings agency work or property management work in England must belong to a redress scheme. Both are defined as things done in the course of a business in response to instructions from someone else. | Letting as landlord in your own right differs from acting on an owner’s instructions. As the owner’s agent or manager, or managing for others, you are likely to be covered. |
| Client Money Protection Schemes for Property Agents Regulations 2019 | A property agent holding client money (money received in letting or management work and held on behalf of another person) must belong to an approved scheme. | Rent collected on the owner’s behalf under a management agreement may be client money. |
| Housing Act 2004, Part 2, and the 2018 prescribed descriptions Order | An HMO with five or more persons in two or more households must be licensed, subject to the Order’s building tests. If it is not, the person having control or managing, the occupiers’ landlord and any superior landlord can commit an offence. A term in the tenancy agreement is not on its own a defence for the superior landlord. | The “person managing” is an owner or lessee receiving rents from occupiers: usually you. |
| Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006, reg. 4 | The manager must keep escape routes clear and in repair, and fire alarms and equipment working. | Day-to-day fire safety falls on you. |
| Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 | The Order does not apply to domestic premises, but parts used in common by the occupants of more than one dwelling fall outside that definition. | Shared hallways and stairs in a building of flats or bedsits can bring a fire risk assessment duty. |
This page covers England only; Wales and Scotland have their own rules. Councils can also run additional or selective licensing schemes covering smaller properties.
A rent repayment order (RRO) requires a landlord who has committed certain housing offences, including running an unlicensed HMO, to pay occupiers an amount of their rent, or pay the council an amount of universal credit. Insurance will not usually meet it.
In Rakusen v Jepsen [2023] UKSC 9, decided on 1 March 2023, the Supreme Court held that an RRO under the Housing and Planning Act 2016 could not be made against a superior landlord. The facts were rent-to-rent: the owner let a flat to a company with the right to sublet, the company licensed rooms to individuals, and the flat was an unlicensed HMO.
The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 changed that. From 1 May 2026 an order can be made against the landlord or any superior landlord, and landlords named in the same order are jointly and severally liable. For an unlicensed HMO the order can cover a period of up to two years. The changes do not apply to offences committed before 1 May 2026, or to the part of a continuing offence before that date.
The Act is being brought in in stages: tenancy reforms and the RRO changes started on 1 May 2026, with the landlord database and ombudsman to follow. Check the government’s implementation roadmap for the current position.
Only if part of your business is managing or letting property for other people. Apex arranges PI for letting agents, but pure rent-to-rent, where you take a lease and let as landlord, is mainly a liability and property risk.
PI becomes relevant when:
An owner who loses money through your error, such as an unprotected deposit or a missed licence renewal, may then claim negligence. See our guide to PI for estate and letting agents and, if you hold deposits, deposit handling and where PI overlaps.
Underwriters respond best when they can see the whole structure at once. Put this in your first email, property by property:
A spreadsheet with one row per property saves a round of questions. For the owner’s side, our pages on HMO landlord insurance and landlord rent protection and legal expenses explain what the owner’s policy should say.
A complete proposal gets better terms than a bare one, and a broker can only present what you tell us. Have these ready:
Speak to a broker
Rent-to-rent cover, placed by a named broker
Send us your current schedule, or tell us about the property if you are arranging cover for the first time. Or leave your number and a named broker will call you back, usually the same working day.
Apex Insurance Brokers is an independent insurance broker based in Bristol, established in 2009 and authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. We are not tied to one insurer: we work with over 30 markets, including Lloyd’s syndicates through wholesale brokers, and every client has a named broker who handles the placement, mid-term changes, certificates for clients and the renewal.
Usually property owners’ liability in your own name, contents for anything you furnish, loss of rent sized to your income, and often legal expenses. Add employers’ liability if you have staff and professional indemnity if you manage for other owners. The owner normally keeps the buildings policy, and their insurer should know about the arrangement.
Normally the owner, who owns it and whose mortgage lender usually requires it. The owner should tell their insurer that a company is subletting and how the property is occupied. Ask for written confirmation and for your interest to be noted.
For offences committed on or after 1 May 2026, yes. The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 amended the Housing and Planning Act 2016 so an order can be made against a superior landlord, reversing the effect of Rakusen v Jepsen. Where an order is made against more than one landlord, they are jointly and severally liable.
Do not expect it to. Liability and professional indemnity policies commonly exclude fines, penalties and sums such as rent repayment orders. Some legal expenses policies help with defence costs, subject to their terms. The real protection is keeping licences current.
It depends on what you do. The redress requirement in England applies to lettings agency work and property management work, both defined as work done for a business in response to someone else’s instructions. Letting as landlord under your own lease is different; acting as the owner’s agent, or managing for other owners, is likely to fall within it.
Often not. Many landlord policies exclude or restrict short-term and holiday letting, or cover it only when declared. More guests and more turnover mean more visitor liability and theft risk, so tell the insurer which properties take short stays and how often.
Apex arranges cover for rent-to-rent operators in England. Tell us about your properties and agreements and we’ll find cover that fits. Or call 0117 325 0027.
Start your quote Call 0117 325 0027Apex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales, company number 07014570. This page is general information, not advice on your individual circumstances. Cover is always subject to the insurer’s acceptance and the policy terms, and this page does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.
