Installing a key safe into the property that you manage could provide many security benefits and offer a great deal of convenience for property managers.
That being said, will a key safe affect a tenant’s house insurance policy at all? If so, why is that the case?
Let’s look at what a key safe can bring to any home and what other implications might occur.
Key safes and house insurance
Tenants within a building will usually have some kind of insurance to make sure their possessions are protected against theft, damage, or other kinds of unwanted occurrences. As a property manager, you can help them understand what type of insurance is needed.
House or home insurance is one of these insurances. Depending on the agreed terms, claims can be made against loss of belongings, damage to possessions etc. through the insuring company whom the policy is with so that financial remuneration for this trouble can be made.
A key safe is designed to store keys in a secure location with easy access for those who’ve been granted permission to access them, so it might seem confusing as to why they could potentially affect house or home insurance.
Key safes like this are designed to store shared keys for communal spaces, like storage closets, bin areas, or garages. Therefore, it would be far more sensible to store the key safe inside the building where only those with permitted access to the building can get close to the key safe. In turn, this should hopefully reduce your insurance premiums, but you’d need to check this with your insurer.
There is a chance that your premiums could increase if you state that keys are kept in a key safe when you sign your policy, but this could be a worthwhile thing to do because if you don’t tell your insurer that keys are kept in a key safe and somebody breaks into your home using these keys, then this could invalidate the policy entirely.
It’s important to know that the key safes on offer from Intratone are extremely secure and provide a much safer way of storing keys than other ways like under a doormat or a plant pot.
What does this mean for your choice of insurance?
Well, if some sort of service charge or a maintenance fee is paid, this might mean typical building insurance isn’t necessary, just contents insurance because the building’s condition will likely be covered by the service or maintenance fee. As property manager, it’s wise to speak with the tenant about this first, however.
Whichever policy is taken out, advise your tenant to read through the terms and conditions thoroughly so they know the finer details of what they’re signing. This will save experiencing any unwanted surprises further down the line.
The location of the key safe needs to be considered. If you are storing communal keys for all residents, like a storage cupboard for cleaning products, the key safe should be kept inside the building rather than outside, adding an extra level of security.
Some insurance companies are fine with tenants leaving keys in a key safe, as long as the model is good, the safe is strong enough, and it is being used properly.
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