‘Our history is fast disappearing’: thatched cottages are at risk due to rising insurance levels
Ireland’s thatched cottage owners fear they could face extinction unless the state intervenes to help them secure affordable insurance cover.
Hatched cottages have been a quintessential Irish symbol for hundreds of years, but it is estimated that more than 1,000 are still in existence throughout the island.
Some owners have been unable to find cover since the recession, while others have received quotes for building insurance up to €8,500 and cannot pay.
Irish companies that provide such insurance are no longer taking on new customers due to a “serious decline in the claims experience”, and UK underwriters who previously insured these homes have left the market since Brexit. Have given.
High insurance costs have resulted in some people taking the risk of living in an uninsured home, with owners fearing losing everything in the event of an accident.
Sean McLaughlin, 78, of Malin Head, Co. Donegal, bought his thatched house in the village of Culourt in the 1970s. The house was one of six thatched properties within 100 yards of each other, but now only one remains.
Mr McLaughlin’s house, which is nearly 300 years old, has become a popular attraction in the area, with tourists regularly stopping by for photographs.
“The locals didn’t value these homes years ago because they reminded them of growing up in poverty and crap conditions, but now that it’s the only house in my particular village, they really appreciate it and they I like the fact that it’s traditional and it brings people to Culourt,” Mr McLaughlin said.
However, despite several efforts to keep his house safe, he has not been able to get an insurance cover in the last 15 years. “I was insured for almost 10 years. I didn’t have any claims or anything, but around 2007, when the big recession hit, I got a letter from my insurers to say that underwriters weren’t willing to underwrite anymore. That was the last time I was insured.
“There was a time when there were some possibilities (to get insurance), but it was so expensive that I could not do it. Now there is no one to insure homes like me. Now there are so many conditions and rules that it has stopped the houses from being traditional.
“When you think of Ireland, you think of Guinness and the thatched house, but this is one aspect of our history that is rapidly disappearing.”
Some thatched houses have been in families for generations, but others have been recently acquired. With insurance companies not taking on new customers, these people in particular have struggled to get cover.
OBF Insurance Group has been one of the main providers of cover in recent years, but a spokesperson said: “Due to the severe decline in claims experience on thatched properties, Lloyd’s underwriters have decided to refrain from writing new thatch home insurance. Has decided.
“They are continuing to offer refurbishment and will continue to offer insurance to the buyer of a pallet property where they have already insured for the seller. If insuring a pallet property would have been profitable then other insurers would come to the market. The underwriters have taken this decision to protect their existing thatched property policyholders.”
Jennifer Grace of Dublin bought a thatched house in Wexford, Bellymond, Co. in 2019.
It was originally intended to be a vacation home, but she now hopes to live there permanently. However, efforts to get affordable home insurance have proved unsuccessful so far.
The inside of the house has been completely modernized and extensive work has been done on it.
He had the property redecorated and the fireplace blocked off to increase his chances of getting insurance, but the only bid he received was €8,500. Other companies will not quote him at all.
“When I was buying this, there was no Brexit. We closed the offer in June 2019, but the sale didn’t last until November. It was the new year when we started trying to get insurance. I’m going through all the odds or costs. Wasn’t ready, I was a little scared.
“If that house catches fire, we’ll lose everything.”
Some owners told Kilmore Quay, in Wexford, a village famous for its traditional thatched houses Irish independent They were struggling to get insurance because there are so many thatched houses in one area.
Trish Donovan contacted several brokers and insurance companies and had to meet a number of conditions. He removed the stove from the house, there is no open fire and the chimney is sealed. Yet no Irish company will insure it as there are other thatched houses within 50 meters of the property.
“It’s not like I can lift and move the house,” she said.
“We had to go abroad to a German company. Ours is over €2,000 and this is for general home insurance. For a three-bedroom house, that’s a lot of money. ,
Thatched pubs in rural Ireland are also calling on the government to help businesses get cover, with some paying up to €20,000 for building insurance.
One woman, who wished to remain anonymous, said her family was forced to close their pub as they could not afford insurance. It was the last pub in that area and some locals were unhappy with the pub closing its doors for good.
“My father passed away in 2020 and it fell for my mother to source insurance. In 2021, she received a letter saying that the company that was covering her insurance was leaving the Irish market.
“The pub was closed for a long time and I eventually took out insurance, but it was not going to cover everything. Basically you were looking to potentially get insurance to keep a business hit with the COVID restrictions around €12,000 or so. ,
There have been very few incidents in the last 10 years where thatched houses caught fire.
In 2015, three properties in Adare, Co Limerick were severely damaged after a fire. Last month, a family home in Duncannon, Wexford, was also gutted by fire. Drogheda, an ancient thatched hut in Ko Louth, was partially destroyed in 2020 in what is believed to be an arson attack.
However, owners of pallet property have argued that the number of fires is not enough to justify the higher premium.
A petition calling on the government to address the disparity between regular property insurance and pallet insurance has garnered hundreds of signatures so far. “If this insurance position is left to continue, our heritage will suffer,” the petition said.
A Heritage Council spokesman said it was hopeful that market deficits in insurance providers could be addressed, and that “a basis for premium calculation that works for all parties involved could be created”. . “The Heritage Council will consult with the Insurance and Heritage sectors and issue recommendations on how to proceed for a working group composed of heritage personnel from the Heritage Council and Department of Housing representatives, and local authority areas,” he said.
