Best Landlord Insurance for Portfolios
Written by Scott Jones, founder of PropertyKiln · Last updated
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Portfolio insurance is not about the cheapest premium. It is about one policy that will actually pay out when a GBP 1m+ combined asset base goes wrong.
What "portfolio landlord insurance" actually buys you
For 5+ units, a portfolio or multi-property policy usually gives you:
One renewal date and one schedule for all properties.
A multi-property discount, often 5-20% vs separate policies, depending on provider and property count.
Consistent buildings, contents and liability cover across the portfolio, with optional extras like rent guarantee and legal expenses.
Flexibility to add and remove properties mid-term, usually pro-rata.
You are comparing specialist brokers/insurers (Alan Boswell, CIA, Total Landlord, Just Landlords) with aggregators/brokers (Simply Business, Direct Line for Business as a direct underwriter).
At-a-glance: portfolio features
| Provider | Portfolio minimum and discount | Key cover types | HMO / short-let stance | Online and claims feel | Indicative pricing notes (2025-26) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alan Boswell | Multi-property discounts for "multiple property landlords", including blocks, FHL, Airbnb and commercial; exact thresholds tailored by broker | Buildings, contents, property owners' liability, malicious damage by tenants, rent guarantee, legal expenses, home emergency | Explicitly covers HMOs, holiday homes, serviced accommodation and Airbnb where disclosed | Broker model with in-house claims team and dedicated handler | Flexible option for first-time and portfolio landlords, with multiple-property discounts |
| Just Landlords | Multi-property policies available (typically 3+ units) with portfolio discounts vs single policies | Buildings and landlords' contents as standard; options for loss of rent, alternative accommodation, legal expenses and home emergency | Offers specialist cover for HMOs and holiday lets where declared correctly | Direct specialist insurer; online quotes plus phone support | Mid-pack on price (cheaper than CIA, more than Direct Line in a 1-bed sample) |
| Simply Business | Multi-property insurance marketed from about GBP 14.39/month, with discounts when you add multiple addresses | Broker platform: buildings, contents, liability, loss of rent, legal expenses, home emergency, rent guarantee | Can place HMO and holiday-let risks, but depends on which underwriter you select and accurate disclosure | Online multi-quote engine, documents same day; claims process depends on chosen insurer | Portfolio pricing is quote-driven and varies widely |
| Direct Line for Business | Multi-property landlord discounts, including around 10% off when insuring 15+ properties in some product tiers | Buildings, contents, property owners' liability, optional loss of rent, malicious damage by tenants, legal expenses and home emergency | Has HMO options and student lets, but you must declare use. Short-let / Airbnb may need specialist wording | Direct insurer with strong online self-service and well-regarded claims handling | Towards the cheaper end for a standard BTL |
| CIA Landlords | Specialist broker with portfolio schemes; sample quote comparisons show them sometimes at the higher end | Places buildings, contents, liability, rent guarantee, legal expenses and home emergency via a panel of insurers | Strong on non-standard risks (DSS, HMOs, students), and will place short-lets where mainstream brands will not | Broker-led service, heavy use in landlord forums for tricky cases | Example 1-bed quote came out highest in one independent comparison |
| Total Landlord | Online multi-property policy; you can insure over 15 properties online and more by phone | Buildings, contents, liability, optional loss of rent, legal expenses; portfolio landlord-focused covers | Will consider HMOs and some holiday-lets; portfolio criteria and terms apply | Direct landlord specialist, online portfolio management and phone support | Marketed as "convenient and cost-effective" for portfolio landlords |
Cover types and gotchas
What you can usually get in a portfolio policy
Most portfolio schemes can include:
Buildings insurance: core fire, flood, storm, escape of water, impact, subsidence, etc.
Landlord contents: typically GBP 5k-25k per property for white goods, flooring and furniture.
Property owners' liability: often GBP 2m-10m, with strong scores for providers like Alan Boswell/Aviva on liability.
Loss of rent / alternative accommodation: commonly 12-36 months of rent after insured damage; some offer set limits (e.g. up to GBP 30k per property) while others link to the sum insured.
Rent guarantee: as an add-on, usually with strict referencing and excess terms.
Legal expenses: cover for eviction, arrears recovery and other disputes, often up to GBP 50k-100k in legal costs.
Home emergency: 24/7 call-out for burst pipes, boiler breakdown etc., with per-claim limits.
Exclusions you need to read
Portfolio policies are full of landmines. Common ones across the providers above:
Unoccupancy clauses: reduced cover or exclusions after 30-60 days empty, unless you tell them and meet inspection and heating requirements.
Short-let / Airbnb use: standard landlord wording rarely covers frequent short-term guests unless you have a specific holiday-let or serviced-accommodation policy. Alan Boswell and some others offer these, but you must select them.
HMOs: need explicit HMO wording; a standard single-AST landlord policy is not enough.
Malicious damage by tenants: often an optional add-on or a tightly defined extension. Some policies include it as standard; others exclude or cap it.
Rent guarantee conditions: rent guarantee cover is usually void if you skip proper references, ignore arrears triggers, or fail to serve notices on time.
Excesses for buildings claims often sit around GBP 100-500, with higher compulsory excesses for escape of water or subsidence.
Claims experience and management
Independent reviews and consumer tests paint a consistent picture:
Alan Boswell scores highly on service and claims support, partly because you get an in-house claims team and a named handler fighting your corner with the underwriter.
Direct Line for Business has a strong UK retail insurance brand, good phone support and decent online claim handling, which shows up in positive consumer review scores and comparisons.
Just Landlords is seen as feature-rich cover at a mid-range price, with positive feedback on clarity of wording and add-ons, though you are dealing with them and their chosen underwriter rather than a broker who can switch you.
CIA and Simply Business are brokers: claims experience varies with the underlying insurer, which is exactly why you sometimes see both very good and very bad stories in forums.
Total Landlord positions itself as landlord-specialist with a big portfolio book; you get dedicated landlord teams but, again, the actual speed of payout depends on their underwriter and your paperwork.
Online account management is strongest at Direct Line and Simply Business and at Total Landlord for portfolio admin, with Alan Boswell and CIA leaning more on direct broker contact.
What a portfolio landlord should prioritise
With a portfolio, focus less on "who is GBP 50 cheaper" and more on whether the policy actually matches how you let:
Correct property type and use
If you have HMOs, student lets, benefits tenants or a mix of BTL, holiday lets and commercial, go to a specialist like Alan Boswell, CIA or Total Landlord who can structure a proper portfolio policy. If your portfolio is simple single-lets, Direct Line, Just Landlords or a Simply Business panel quote can be fine, provided wording matches reality.
Loss of rent and rebuild limits, not just buildings sum
Sanity-check that the loss of rent limit per property actually matches your rent for 12-24 months, and that the rebuild cost is realistic for your area.
Multi-property flexibility
You want to be able to add, remove or swap properties mid-term without admin charges every time. Portfolio-specific products like Total Landlord's multi-property policy and broker-arranged portfolios are built for this.
Claims support
When you have 10+ units, you will have claims. A broker who will fight with the loss adjuster can be worth more than saving GBP 100 a year. This is where Alan Boswell scores well.
Total package cost
Add buildings, contents, liability, rent guarantee, legal expenses and home emergency and compare the total annual portfolio cost, not just the buildings premium.
Common portfolio insurance mistakes
Under-declaring HMOs and short-lets: taking a cheap single-let policy and quietly running it as a 5-bed HMO or frequent Airbnb. The insurer can refuse a claim completely for misrepresentation.
Assuming rent guarantee is standard: many portfolio landlords expect rent guarantee to be included but have only loss-of-rent after insured damage. You normally need a separate, condition-heavy rent guarantee bolt-on.
Chasing GBP 20 off the premium and ignoring exclusions: you often see landlords recommending the absolute cheapest quote on comparison sites without realising it excludes malicious damage by tenants or has a GBP 1,000 escape-of-water excess.
Not adjusting sums insured when rents and rebuild costs rise: sticking to the same sums insured from 5 years ago even though rents and build costs have jumped, leading to under-insurance and average-basis payouts on claims.
Letting portfolio complexity creep in unnoticed: mixing in a holiday cottage, a commercial unit, and an HMO but leaving everything on a vanilla BTL policy because "they did not ask". A portfolio-aware broker should re-structure that into correct segments.
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