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Many of the most common problems landlords experience can be prevented, or at least reduced, by carrying out regular maintenance and periodic inspections and establishing clear lines of communication with tenants. But of course, no matter how well prepared you are, you can’t eliminate the risk of things going wrong entirely.
Here, we reveal the biggest risks landlords are likely to face when it comes to their rental properties based on our analysis of claims data from 2020-2024, and share our top tips for protecting your investment from the most common and costly claims in 2025.
‘Escape of water’, as leaks from burst pipes and plumbing issues are known in the insurance industry, is consistently the most common claim we see at Total Landlord and also the most common reason why landlords make an insurance claim across the UK. Defined as ‘when water has entered the property by the mains water supply and caused damage’, it usually refers to a leak within the property that is caused by something like a burst pipe, a faulty washing machine or a leaking toilet. Even a small leak can cause significant damage, leading to flooding and mould. The highest claim we ever paid out for escape of water was for £187,207 when water leaked from a pipe under the floor in the tenant’s bathroom, resulting in damage so severe that the wooden flooring throughout the property had to be removed, along with the entire kitchen.
Around one in three escape of water claims at Total Landlord are due to a burst pipe, and this can be expensive and time-consuming to fix. The average claim for burst pipes at Total Landlord has climbed steadily over the last few years, from £2,844 in 2020 to £7,501 in 2024. Figures from the British Association of Insurers show that the average cost of weather-related home insurance claims for burst pipes was £9.300 in 2021, highlighting the impact of extreme weather. A severe snap of cold weather can lead to a surge in claims – the ‘Beast from the East’ in 2018 led to a tenfold increase in pipe claims compared to the previous year.
Top tips to reduce the risk of burst pipes
For more advice, read our guide, ‘How to avoid burst pipes in your rental property’ and watch our short video which is packed with practical tips to help you and your tenants avoid burst pipes.
The number of storm claims paid out by Total Landlord quadrupled between 2018 and 2022, with the average claim paid peaking at £10,801 in the 2020 storm season. At the time of writing in January 2025, we’ve already had five named storms in the 2024/25 season – Ashley, Bert, Conall, Darragh and Eowyn - the first named storm to hit in 2025.
Most storm damage claims are for roof damage, typically as a result of high winds causing tiles to fall off the roof. We’ve yet to see the full impact of these recent storms on claims, but storms have been the second most common cause of claims in four out of the last five years. In 2024, the average claim for storm damage was for £3,636, but some claims are considerably higher. In 2023, Total Landlord paid out £97.804.40 for roof damage to a property caused by torrential rain.
February is the most common month for storm damage claims, so it’s a good idea to prepare your rental property to reduce the impact at this time of year.
For more guidance read our guide, ‘How to protect your rental property from storms’.
The risk of flooding in the UK is rising as the UK’s weather becomes more unpredictable and claims can be expensive, with the average flood claim at Total Landlord totalling £13,739.
One of Total Landlord’s highest ever claims - for a staggering £143,755 - was for a flood caused by storm Desmond in 2015, which meant that the tenants had to be evacuated after an entire street was flooded. With unsettled weather on the increase and a rise in flash floods that often occur with very little warning, landlords should do all they can to reduce the risks and impact of flooding.
Read our Ultimate guide to safeguarding your property from flood damage, for more advice on how to reduce your risks.
However careful you and your tenants are, accidents will happen. ‘Accidental damage’ is damage that happens suddenly, due to an unintentional act from an unexpected and unforeseen action. Accidental damage, such as broken windows or damaged pipes, has been the third most common claim type at Total Landlord for all but one of the last five years. Around 80% of the accidental damage claims we see at Total Landlord are for ‘accidental loss’ scenarios, which includes things like a child kicking a ball through the window or a tenant banging a nail into a water pipe. One of the most common causes of accidental loss we see at Total Landlord is a tap being left running unattended.
Even if the accidental damage was caused by tenants, it’s up to the landlord to pay for the repairs. And these can be extensive. One of our highest accidental damage claims at Total Landlord was for £41,316, when dirty water seeped through all the flooring of the property, which needed to be stripped out and sanitised, due to a collapsed drain. The costs were for loss of rent as well as damage, as the tenants had to move out while the works were being completed. On average, accidental damage claims over the last five years have been for just under £2,000. Although accidental damage is difficult to predict, there are some steps you can take to minimise the risks and impact.
For more guidance on how to protect your rental property from accidental damage, read our ultimate guide to accidental damage insurance.
Rented properties are generally less secure than owner-occupied properties. But it’s in both tenants’ and landlords’ interests to work together to protect the property from break-ins. At Total Landlord, we see significant spikes in break ins during the summer and winter months, so it’s a good idea to pay particular attention to security around these times, and of course if tenants are going on holiday and leaving the property unoccupied.
Fortunately, there are quite a few things that both landlords and tenants can do to protect themselves from break-in. Maintaining a good relationship with tenants so that you can set clear expectations and lines of communication, can help protect your property and your tenants from break-in. The more precautions you both take to make the property unappealing to a would-be intruder, the better.
For more guidance on how to protect your rental property from break-ins, read our ultimate guide to securing your rental property.
Subsidence is when the foundations of a property begin to sink into the ground below the building, which can make the foundations unstable. The frequency of subsidence claims has fluctuated over the last five years, but like those for storm damage, they’re on the rise due to climate change. At Total Landlord, subsidence claims have one of the highest average payouts of all claims, at almost £7,000 per claim. The highest claim for subsidence over the last five years was in 2022, when the landlord noticed that the front bay window was separating from the main building due to movement from tree roots. This resulted in a claim for £52,731. The sooner subsidence is treated, the better, so it's important that both landlords and tenants are aware of the warning signs.
For more guidance on how to protect your rental property from subsidence, read our guide, ‘Subsidence: what is it, how do you spot it and what should you do if you have it?’
Fortunately, fire claims are rare. However, they can pose a risk to life, as well as being costly, with the average payout at Total Landlord coming in at nearly £36,000. Sometimes claims reach eye-watering amounts; The highest in the last five years was for £360,179 when a wild grass fire spread from the park next door due to hot weather in 2022. The previous year a fire due to a tumble dryer resulted in a claim for £186,650.
It’s very important to educate tenants about fire safety, but landlords, particularly those renting out HMOs, must also be aware of their legal responsibilities. For example:
For full up to date guidance on fire safety requirements, refer to GOV.UK.
For more advice on how to protect your rental property from fire, read our ultimate guide to fire safety regulations for landlords and watch our short video of top fire prevention tips for landlords and tenants.
Although buildings insurance is essential for protecting against property loss, liability insurance can be even more critical. If you lack buildings insurance, your financial risk is capped at the value of the property. However, liability claims—such as cases involving severe injury or death due to negligence—can lead to damages amounting to millions of pounds. Making sure your landlord insurance policy includes sufficient third-party liability coverage is crucial. Standard homeowner policies are not tailored for rental properties, so depending on them could leave you underinsured.
Average liability claims over the last five years have been over £5,000, with one claim in 2023 totalling £45,376. In this case, the tenant suffered an injury to their finger after their hand became trapped in the back door, which was sticking and not shutting properly. This was repaired and the policy paid out compensation to the tenant for the injury.
Top tips to lower liability risks:
Find out all you need to know about landlord liability in our Ultimate guide to landlord liability insurance.
Follow the steps offered here in this guide to protecting your property from claims in 2025, and you can rest assured that you’re doing all you can to reduce your risks of having to make a claim this year. You’ll also find lots more useful information by heading over to our Knowledge Centre. By dealing with any issues promptly and carrying out regular inspections and maintenance, you can often prevent minor problems escalating into bigger ones and eating into your profits.
But of course, you can never reduce risks entirely. Having tenants living in a property is considered higher risk than an owner-occupied property, so most buy to let mortgage lenders will require landlords to have appropriate insurance in place. Normal home insurance won’t cover you for the risks associated with renting out your property, so it’s a good idea to take out specialist landlord insurance that will provide comprehensive cover for rental-specific events, such as accidental damage by tenants or their guests. Total Landlord has a dedicated in-house claims team of expert advisers who are on hand to help you should the worst happen.
Watch our short video below, with founder and CEO of Total Landlord, Eddie Hooker, to learn about Total Landlord’s award winning landlord insurance, and read our guide to find out how to choose the right landlord insurance for you.
