There’s estimated to be 11 million people in the UK with a criminal record and plenty of them need home insurance, but how easy is it to obtain it when you have a criminal record?
Here we break down everything you need to know about buying home insurance if you’ve got a previous conviction.
What counts as a criminal conviction?
A criminal conviction can range from a prison sentence or a speeding conviction – there are many types of offence which count, no matter how minor.
- Only unspent convictions matter. Even if asked, you do not have to disclose any convictions that are spent. Convictions become spent after a certain time period and after that they’re not allowed to count against you, as mentioned in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.
- You may be asked about the convictions of everyone covered by the insurance, such as your partner, children or grandchildren. If it’s home insurance, that’s everyone who lives in the house.
- Simple cautions, reprimands and final warnings are spent immediately and do not need to be disclosed as these are not criminal convictions.
Do you have spent convictions in last 3 years?
When your convictions are spent, in the eyes of the law your past misdemeanours have been forgotten, and we at Adrian Flux won’t hold them against you either. If you have spent convictions or unspent convictions our sympathetic and understanding team will be happy to discuss your insurance needs and find you a quote.
What could happen if you don’t disclose convictions when asked?
If you choose not to disclose your convictions to your insurance company, you risk your insurance becoming invalid.
If you’ve made a claim, the insurance company can ask for the money back.
Sometimes these things happen because the insurance company didn’t explain things clearly.
If that’s the case, you might be able to get this resolved.
My partner has a criminal conviction, but I don’t. Do I need to declare that?
In short, yes. Anyone living in the property needs to be accounted for when it comes to convictions, not just the policy holder. When asked if anyone living in the property has ever been convicted of a crime, awaiting a trial or any unspent convictions you must let your insurer know.
Here to help
As one of the UK’s leading brokers of specialist home insurance our goal is to find you home insurance deals of the highest quality and greatest value, whatever your circumstances. Buildings or contents, standard semi, log cabin or listed building, landlord or homeowner; we can help you find the right house insurance for your situation