Unoccupied Home Check Log

Who this is for

A dated record of every visit to a home left empty. Each line shows who called, what they checked inside and out, the meter readings and anything found, so problems are caught early and you can show your insurer the home was looked after.

Owners away for a long spell, families looking after the home of a relative in hospital, care or who has died, landlords between tenancies, and anyone whose policy sets conditions for a home left unoccupied.

What this helps you track

• When the home was visited and by whom
• Post, doors, windows, alarm and the outside checked each time
• Leaks, damp and the heating or frost protection inside
• Meter readings that show a leak or heating left on
• Problems found and what was done about them

How to use it

1. Fill in the address, the owner and keyholders, the date the home was left empty and how the heating and water were left.
2. Copy your insurer's conditions for an unoccupied home from the policy wording, word for word, so every visitor can see them.
3. At each visit, write the date and your name, tick each area checked and found in order, and take the meter readings.
4. Leave a box unticked if something is wrong and write what you found and did in the last column.
5. Page two continues the visits; the browser version saves in your own browser.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

How often should someone visit?

Your insurer may set conditions for a home left empty, such as how often it is visited or whether the water is turned off. Copy them into the header from your policy. The log has no interval of its own.

Why record meter readings?

A reading that jumps between visits can point to a leak, a heater left on or someone using the property. The readings also give you figures for the bills while the home is empty.

What does a tick mean?

A tick means that area was checked and found in order. Leave it blank if it was not checked, and leave it unticked with a note in the last column if something was wrong, so a problem is never mistaken for a pass.

How is this different from a house-sitter sheet?

The house-sitter information sheet tells someone how the house works while they stay there. This log records visits to a home nobody is living in, as evidence for you and your insurer that it was checked.