Leaving Your Leisure Home Unoccupied Condition

Between 1st November and 31st March both days inclusive, if the leisure home is left without an occupant for more than 48 hours you must:

1. Isolate the water supply to the leisure home

  • The mains water supply must be turned off at the internal stopcock
  • The mains water supply must also be turned off at the first available external point of entry of the water supply to the leisure home.

As well as the above, you must take one of the following actions:

A.  Drain down the property and heating system –   

All installed hot and cold-water tanks must be emptied by leaving all hot and cold taps and showers fully open with all plugs, debris and any blockages being removed from any plug holes. In addition, all waste outlets must be left open and clear of any debris with toilets flushed until water stops coming out. 

  • If your leisure home has a sealed heating system containing antifreeze, then the heating system will not need to be drained down but antifreeze levels have to be checked annually and particularly prior to any period of unoccupancy. 

B.  Leaving the heating on – 

The entire home must have a heating system that is mains gas or a geothermal or full electric system (not night storage heaters), fitted with automatic controls and a separate thermostat. On this basis the heating may be left on provided;

  • The system is set to operate continuously for 24 hours of each day (not controlled by a timing device); and
  • The thermostat is set to not less than 13 degrees Celsius;
  • All internal doors of your leisure home remain open

Upon reconnection of the water supply the home must be inspected internally

Any outbuildings with water supplies must also benefit from the above actions.

Failure to comply with the requirements above will result in loss or damage resulting from escape of water or burst pipes being excluded from this insurance.

Always refer to your leisure home insurance policy for details of the exact requirement you are expected to meet. This will help ensure that your leisure home insurance is not compromised, should you need to make a claim.

For more specific information and frequently asked questions relating to static caravan insurance, holiday lodge insurance, holiday home insurance or leisure home insurance, please select your product of interest below.