The insurance is designed to protect you against the risk of things happening suddenly which you could not have expected, such as fire, theft, flood, storm and damage by vermin. It is not designed to protect you against losses that arise due to the gradual deterioration or poor maintenance of your holiday home.

Static caravan parks will insist that you have insurance, and most parks also insist that the policy includes £5 million Public Liability cover. Some parks allow sub-letting, others do not.

The most common cause of damage to a holiday home is water escaping from burst pipes during the winter months. Providing you follow the recommended instructions given with the insurance, then the damage will be covered.

Cover can be Market Value or Reinstatement 'New for Old'

• Market Value - The cost of replacing your caravan at its present value, taking into consideration year of manufacture, type, wear and tear.
• Reinstatement ‘new for old’ - Your caravan and contents will be covered for replacement as new. (If we cannot replace your caravan with the same model, we will work with you to find the best equivalent).

The structure of the caravan includes the value of the holiday home, walls, gates, fences, hedges, skirting, patios, decking, railings, gazebos, pergolas, awnings, oil and gas tanks, cesspits, septic tanks, fixed hot tubs or jacuzzis, ornamental ponds, and fountains. Car ports, garages, including garages on nearby sites are also included, as are external lighting, alarm systems, CCTV, solar heating systems and wind turbines. Likewise, fixed recreational toys and brick-built barbecues which are situated directly adjacent to your holiday home, outbuildings such as sheds, laminated, wood effect or vinyl floor covering, that could not be reasonably removed and re-used, inspection hatches and covers all supplying your holiday home.

Contents are what you put into the holiday home, such as bedding, kitchen utensils, cutlery, crockery, kettles, toasters, televisions, radios and patio furniture that may be left on your decking.

Any furniture, both fitted and free-standing that comes with a brand-new holiday home is classed as structure.

Sports equipment such as bicycles, e-bikes, boats, kayaks etc should be covered on your permanent home insurance for use at your holiday home.

Our standard policy gives you the choice of insuring for market value, or reinstatement ‘new for old’, with a £5 million PL cover, and includes debris removal, re-siting, damage by vermin, loss of use cover, fire, storm, flood (depending on the park location), subsidence, theft, loss of keys, excess £50.

For more information, please contact caravans@lwood.co.uk or give us a call on 01274 515747.