Do I need home insurance with legal cover?
If you need some legal advice or have a problem you need help resolving, legal expenses cover could come in handy. Find out how it works and whether you should include it in your home insurance quote.
If you need some legal advice or have a problem you need help resolving, legal expenses cover could come in handy. Find out how it works and whether you should include it in your home insurance quote.
What is legal cover on home insurance?
Legal expenses cover, also known as family legal protection or legal expense insurance (LEI), covers the cost of legal advice and representation for a range of common disputes or claims that may be made against you.
This could include:
- Someone making a claim against you after injuring themselves in your home
- Tradesmen carrying out a poor job in your home but still demanding full payment
- A property dispute with your neighbours
- Someone claiming you’ve misrepresented your home during the sale process.
Can legal expenses cover be added to my home insurance policy?
Legal insurance cover can usually be added to your home insurance as an optional extra, but some policies may include some legal cover as standard. The amount of legal cover offered is typically between £50,000 and £100,000. Cheaper policies may have an upper limit of just £25,000 – so it’s important to check the details.
Many insurance providers also offer a 24/7 legal helpline, as well as access to downloadable legal documents and templates.
It’s important to know that your LEI insurance policy won’t guarantee you’ll get legal representation. You’ll only be covered if you have a ‘reasonable chance’ of winning your claim. That means a likelihood of 51% or more.
What’s included in legal expenses insurance?
In addition to property-related legal assistance, home insurance with legal cover can also cover:
- Personal injury claims
- Employment disputes, such as unfair dismissal or discrimination
- Disputes over faulty or damaged goods
- Issues with neighbours, such as noise and boundary disputes
- Disputes related to buying or selling a house
- Tax disputes
- Medical negligence claims
- Loss of salary if you’re called to do jury service.
Terms and conditions will apply, so it’s important to check the policy wording carefully before you buy.
What’s not included in home insurance legal expenses cover?
It’s always infuriating when insurance claims are rejected, so it’s a good idea to familiarise yourself with your policy to ensure you understand what it does and doesn’t cover.
The areas your policy doesn’t cover are known as exclusions. These vary among providers, but the following scenarios are typically excluded:
- Compensation payments
- Ongoing issues and disputes that began before you started your policy
- Legal claims that have less than 51% chance of success
- Motoring claims – check whether your car insurance includes motor legal protection
- Matrimonial disputes and divorce proceedings
- Libel cases
- Disputes that can be covered by Legal Aid, such as a criminal trial.
How much does legal expenses insurance cost?
It typically costs between £25 and £35 a year to add legal cover to your home insurance. Costs will vary according to the level of cover provided.
Is legal expenses insurance the same as liability cover?
Legal expenses and liability insurance are two different types of cover:
- Legal expenses insurance can help you pay for legal advice and cover solicitor fees if you need to take legal action or defend a claim made against you.
- Liability insurance is there to help pay compensation if anyone brings a claim against you. It can cover you for damages – for example, your kids are playing football in the garden and a wayward shot breaks your neighbour’s window – or if someone is injured in your home. Your home insurance will usually include liability insurance as standard but if you work or run a business from home and you have clients visiting, you’ll probably need to arrange extra cover.
Is legal expenses cover on home insurance worth it?
If you consider that solicitors’ fees can start at around £175 an hour, rising to over £500 an hour for a more experienced solicitor in London, access to a dedicated legal helpline alone could make it worthwhile.
Before you decide to buy legal expense cover as an add-on to your home insurance, check whether it’s already included. When getting a quote through Comparethemarket, we’ll show you on the results page which policies include legal expenses as well as the cost to add it to those that don’t.
It’s also worth checking whether you have any legal cover included as part of a bank account, for example, so you don’t double up on cover. But bear in mind that legal expense cover that you might have with your car insurance will only apply to motoring claims.
Some buildings insurance and home contents policies include family legal protection, as standard.
What is 'after the event' insurance?
Legal expenses cover is usually bought ‘before the event’ or BTE, as an add-on to a home insurance policy to protect you should you need legal representation in the future. ‘After the event’, or ATE, cover is bought after something has happened.
ATE insurance is usually tied into no win, no fee court cases. Solicitors may ask to purchase ATE insurance on your behalf, to make sure their fees are covered even if they don’t win and to cover the legal costs of the other party involved, if necessary.
Where can I find home insurance with legal expenses cover?
You can compare home insurance with legal cover with Comparethemarket. Just tell us a bit about you, your home and any specific features or add-ons you want to include, and we’ll send you a list of suitable home insurance quotes to choose from.
Whether you decide to opt for legal expenses cover or not, comparing home insurance with us is a good way to find a great deal.
Frequently asked question
Can I buy legal expenses cover separately?
You can’t normally buy standalone legal expenses insurance. It generally comes included in your home insurance or it’s added as an extra to your policy. You can, however, arrange after the event legal expenses cover separately, often through your solicitor.
Can I remove legal expenses cover from my home insurance policy?
If you added legal expenses cover to your policy, you should be able to remove it. Give your provider a call to get the ball rolling. However, if legal expenses cover came included in your policy as standard, you won’t be able to remove it.
Will I need to pay an excess to use legal expenses cover?
It depends on your policy, so read the small print carefully. You can find home insurance policies that won’t charge an excess to use legal expenses cover.
I have legal expenses cover. How do I access legal advice?
Insurance providers usually have a helpline you can ring if you need legal advice. Your situation will be assessed and next steps recommended. If you can’t find a helpline number, give your provider a call.
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Helen Phipps - Car and home insurance expert
Having worked in both sides of the industry, Helen’s a real insurance expert. She’s worked directly with several insurance providers and now Comparethemarket. She’s always searching for the cheapest prices for customers and is passionate about saving people money. Being married with two kids, Helen knows all about the cost of living and the benefits of having the right products and insurance for the whole family.
Rachel Lacey - Insurance and money expert
Rachel’s a self-confessed money nerd who’s been writing about personal finance for more than 20 years. She spent 17 years writing for Moneywise, including a few years as Editor, and likes making complicated subjects like insurance, pensions, investing and tax, easy for people to understand.