Home Insurance Rules for an Empty House in Winter

Most home insurance policies in Canada and the US keep covering a house while the owners are away, but only if certain conditions are met. The two that matter in winter are the freezing clause, which usually requires heat to be maintained and someone to check the house at a set interval (often daily, sometimes every two to four days) or the water to be shut off and drained, and the vacancy clause, which commonly limits coverage once a home has been empty for 30 consecutive days in Canada or 60 days on many US forms. The exact wording is in your policy, and it is the wording, not general practice, that decides a claim.

Below: how those clauses usually work, where owners of second homes get caught out, and what should be documented while the family is away.

Why an empty house is a different risk

In a lived-in house, someone notices a cold radiator or a dripping ceiling within hours. In an empty one, a pipe that splits in a January cold snap may not be found until the spring opening, after the water has soaked floors, walls and contents on several levels.

So most policies set conditions: keep the heat on and have a competent person enter regularly, or shut off and drain the water. Miss the condition, and freeze damage may be excluded while the rest of the policy stays in force.

The heating-season freeze clause

In Canada, a common version of this clause excludes damage from freezing of plumbing, heating or sprinkler systems in heated parts of the house during the usual heating season if the home has been unoccupied for more than four consecutive days, unless one of these was done:

• A competent person entered the dwelling daily (or at the interval the policy names) to make sure heat was maintained.
• The water supply was shut off and the pipes, fixtures and appliances were drained.

Four days is typical, but not universal. Some insurers use two days, others seven, and the required visit frequency also varies from daily to every few days. Some policies accept a monitored low-temperature alarm as an alternative to visits, with or without conditions. Read the definitions as well: "competent person" usually means an adult who knows how to check the heating system and what to do if it has failed, not a neighbour's teenager walking past the windows.

US homeowners forms tend to phrase it differently. A standard HO-3 policy generally covers freezing of plumbing only if the owner used reasonable care to maintain heat in the building, or shut off the water supply and drained the systems and appliances. With no fixed visit interval, "reasonable care" is open to argument after a loss, and a clear record of checks is the best answer.

The vacancy clause

Vacancy is a separate condition and is easy to confuse with being away for a few weeks.

In Canada, many insurers treat a dwelling as vacant after 30 consecutive days without occupants, and some definitions add that the occupants have moved out with no intention of returning. Other insurers draw a line between "unoccupied" (furnished, owner intends to return) and "vacant" (empty, no one living there). A seasonal cottage closed for the winter with furniture inside may count as unoccupied under one insurer and still trigger vacancy wording under another. Some carriers do not require notice for a long absence if the owner intends to return; others expect a call to the broker and may issue a vacancy permit or endorsement, sometimes with conditions or an extra premium.

On many US forms, the trigger is 60 consecutive days. After that, losses from vandalism, malicious mischief and glass breakage are commonly excluded, and some policies reduce payouts on other perils. Secondary homes are also often written on separate dwelling policies with their own vacancy rules, so the wording on the cottage or ski house may not match the primary residence.

Where owners get caught out

A few situations come up again and again for households with more than one property:

• The policy was written for full-time occupancy. A house that was the primary residence when insured, and later became a winter-empty second home, may now be rated wrong. Tell the broker when the use of a property changes.
• Heat on, nobody checking. Leaving the thermostat at 15°C helps, but if the policy requires daily or regular entry, heat alone may not satisfy it. A furnace that quietly stops on day three is exactly the case the clause was written for.
• Water drained in part. Shutting the main valve without draining lines, toilets, the water heater, irrigation, and appliances such as dishwashers and ice makers can leave enough water in the system to freeze and split.
• Checks with no record. If the visits happened but nothing was written down, it is the word of the person who checked against the evidence of a burst pipe.

What a good winter check record looks like

Whoever enters the house, a family member, a house manager or an estate service, the record should be able to show that the policy condition was met. For each visit, note:

1. Date, time in and time out, and the name of the person who entered.
2. Interior temperatures on each floor, and the thermostat setting.
3. Heating system status, including any error codes, and fuel level for oil or propane.
4. A walk of every floor, the basement and the attic access, looking for water on floors, stains on ceilings, frost on inside walls and signs of animals.
5. Exterior checks after storms: snow on the roof and around vents, ice at the eaves, damaged windows or doors.
6. Photos of the thermostat and any problem found, and what was done about it.

Send the note to the owner or family office the same day and keep the history for the season. If there is ever a claim, a dated, photographed log is far easier to present than a recollection.

Our checklist for closing a seasonal residence covers the physical shutdown in detail: water, heat, linens, kitchen and security. This guide is about keeping the insurance side intact once the house is closed.

Questions to put to your broker before you leave

• How many days can the house be unoccupied in the heating season before the freezing condition applies?
• How often must a competent person enter, and who counts as one?
• Does a monitored temperature or water-leak alarm satisfy the condition, and what notice do you need about it?
• When does the policy consider this house vacant, and does a long seasonal absence require notice or a vacancy permit?
• Are vandalism, glass breakage or other perils limited after a certain number of days?
• Is the property written as a primary residence, a seasonal home or a rental, and is that still accurate?

Get the answers in writing and keep them with the house file.

Frequently asked questions

Does home insurance cover a burst pipe if nobody was home?

It can, provided the policy conditions for an unoccupied home were met. Most policies cover freezing damage only if heat was maintained and the house was checked at the required interval, or the water was shut off and drained. If neither happened and the absence was longer than the policy allows, freeze damage is often excluded.

How long can a house be left empty before insurance changes?

In the heating season, many Canadian policies set a limit of about four consecutive days before freeze conditions apply, though some use two or seven. For vacancy, 30 consecutive days is common in Canada and 60 days is common on US homeowners forms. Your own policy wording sets the actual number.

Who can do the required checks on an empty house?

Policies usually say a "competent person," meaning an adult who can confirm the heat is working and knows what to do if it is not. That can be a relative, a neighbour, a house manager or a residence care service. What matters is that the visits happen at the required interval and are recorded.

Do you need to tell your insurer you are leaving for the winter?

Some insurers require notice for absences beyond a set period, and some do not as long as you intend to return. Because the rules differ between companies and between primary and secondary homes, ask your broker before you go and keep their answer in writing.

Winter checks for your residence

Keenstead arranges seasonal residence care for homes left empty over the winter: scheduled visits at the interval your policy asks for, written reports with photos after every visit, and arrival preparation before the family returns. Service is available in many Canadian and US cities, including Toronto and Montréal. Tell us about the residence and we will reply in writing with a proposed schedule.