An estimated 400,000 landlords in the UK (29%) have had their property damaged by tenants in the last 12 months, according to the latest research from the National Landlords Association (NLA).

The research also shows that 8% of landlords - around 120,000 - in the UK have had to make an insurance claim of some kind in the last 12 months, and that they are spending on average 5% of their rental income on landlord insurance premiums.

However, half of landlords (49%) say they haven’t spent any money on insurance premiums in the last year.

The news comes after the Chancellor announced that insurance premium tax will rise this November from 6% to 9.5%. The new rate, which includes landlord insurance premiums, is expected to generate up to £1.75bn a year for the Treasury.

The NLA’s Chairman, Carolyn Uphill, is keen to remind landlords to protect their rental investments in order to cover all eventualities and to insure against the unexpected. Uphill said: “It’s alarming just how many landlords find out the hard way that their basic home insurance policy doesn’t provide the cover they need.”