Insurance insurance;

West Lothian Council delivers

A-Z of council services:

Services

Insurance

Do I need building insurance?

No, we insure the structure of your home. As long as you are a council tenant and have not exercised your right to buy you do not have to insure the walls, doors, ceilings, roof, chimneys and window structures.

Do I need contents insurance?

The Council strongly advises all tenants to take out a contents insurance policy to cover your personal belongings. If you do not take out contents insurance, and something happens, then you risk losing all your belongings and not having the money to replace or repair them.

updated 20/06/12

Downloadable documents

Tenants Contents Insurance Scheme - Proposal Form (PDF, 1.38MB)

Frequently Asked Questions

Click a question to see the answer.

If my council property has been damaged by fire, who is responsible for redecoration and replacement of damaged articles?

If your council property has been damaged by fire, you, as the tenant are responsible for making good any damage. This is normally covered by standard household insurance policies, so you should make sure that you have contents insurance on your house.

Is house insurance included with the rent or do I need separate insurance?

The Council has insurance to cover the building, but you need to arrange your own home contents insurance to insure your furniture and possessions.

What can be done about flooding by or damage from other properties in my block

Once it has been identified where the problem lies, if the property causing this issue is Council owned we will make arrangements to have the fault rectified. If the fault lies with an owner they will be approached and told to have the problem repaired. All damage caused by flooding or any other fault should be claimed through the tenant's own home insurance with the exeption of items that would require replacement such as new wall or base units, wall and ceiling boards and so on. The Council will replace these items and re-charge the the price of this work to the person who originally caused the damage.