Listed building insurance

Finding out if your property is listed is easy: the National Heritage List for England (NHLE) contains details of every listed building in England.

There are two ways that buildings can become listed. They can be nominated to Historic England, the organisation in charge of England’s listed buildings, or Historic England can designate the building itself, based on its own research.

You can make certain alterations to a listed building, but the higher the grade the less you can do.

Historic England’s website states that ‘listed buildings are to be enjoyed and used, like any other building. Listed buildings can be altered, extended and sometimes even demolished within government planning guidance’.

But before you make any changes, you must apply to your local authority for consent – making changes without permission is against the law.

Listed buildings do tend to be more expensive to insure on average, but as with every insurance policy, the exact cost of any policy depends on the value of the property being insured. But because listed buildings tend to be harder to repair, requiring rarer materials and amore expertise, premiums are normally higher to reflect this.

Almost certainly: most ordinary home insurance policies aren’t designed to cover the specific needs of a listed property. Specialist insurance should always be your first port of call.

You may well find that your home needs a specialist insurance policy if it’s in a conservation area. Local authorities which govern such areas have the power to make sure your building is preserved.

Yes – subsidence cover is particularly important for older listed buildings. Historic properties often have foundations, walls, or cellars built with traditional materials like timber, stone, or lime mortar, which can be more vulnerable to ground movement than modern construction. Additionally, many listed buildings were constructed before modern drainage systems, so changes in soil moisture or nearby tree roots can increase the risk of subsidence.

Yes – you can get extended unoccupied property cover for a listed building, but it’s usually more restricted than for modern homes. Listed properties often require ongoing maintenance to protect delicate materials (like timber, thatch, or lime mortar), so insurers are cautious about long periods of vacancy.

Insurers typically limit the period a listed building can be left unoccupied before standard cover lapses (often 30–90 days), so a specialist listed building policy is necessary to ensure protection during longer vacancies. Policies may also require a maintenance plan to prevent deterioration of heritage features.

Almost certainly: most ordinary home insurance policies aren’t designed to cover the specific needs of a listed property. Specialist insurance should always be your first port of call.

Yes – listed building insurance typically covers the cost of using specialist craftsmen. Because listed buildings must be repaired or restored in a way that preserves their historic character, insurers include the cost of hiring tradespeople skilled in traditional methods, such as stonemasons, heritage carpenters, or plasterwork specialists.

This is a key difference from standard home insurance, which generally assumes modern repair methods and materials.

Yes – outbuildings can be included in listed building insurance, but cover depends on whether they are part of the listing and their historical significance. Many policies automatically cover structures that are permanently attached or listed alongside the main property, such as historic barns, garden walls, gates, or stables.

If an outbuilding is separately listed or of special heritage value, insurers may require it to be specifically declared and may adjust premiums to reflect the higher cost of specialist repairs and materials.