Thatched roof home insurance

If you are lucky enough to own a thatched roof home and need a specialist thatched home insurance quote then CanCanCover.com could help.

We work with a range of specialist insurer partners who are able to offer cover for homes of special construction, listed buildings or architectural interest so you can compare prices for thatched house insurance.

Often seen as an icon of traditional village life, thatched roofed properties are still incredibly popular and with thousands of these properties still around the UK the love-affair with these picturesque properties shows no signs of letting up.

Whether you currently own a home with a thatched roof or are looking to buy a thatched home there are a number of areas to consider when looking for non-standard home insurance.

Insurers look at risk and reducing the risk to your thatched property from perils such as fire are key to lowering any thatched home insurance premium.

As well as the normal good practice of installing smoke alarms in the property there are other areas to check especially when it comes to thatched properties.

Minimise the use of electrical wiring within the roof space of a thatched property and ensure that any wiring and electrics have been checked by an qualified electrician.

With the right measures in place there is no reason why a thatched property should be at any more risk from fire compared to homes with standard construction.

The risk from fire can increase from the operation of modern wood burning stoves which are used within old chimneys or inappropriate flue liners. Here the danger is that there is a limited thickness of brick in contact with materials such as wheat straw thatch which lead to combustion at higher temperatures which can be generated in the flue. There are special flue liners available which use a combination of steel outer and ceramic inner in conjunction with insulated rock wool.

If you do have spark arrestors fitted then they should be checked and cleaned every year to prevent any tar deposit build up.

There are chemical retardant sprays that can be applied to a thatched roof to prevent the spread of fire along with fire resistant barriers which can be used within the rafters.

There are now guidelines in place for the construction of new thatched properties or extensions called ‘The Dorset’ model. These put forward recommendations which include rafters with fire barriers along with mains and battery powered interlinked smoke detectors.