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Referencing Details:
why you should consider insurance

Despite every care taken with the letting and management of a property, the unexpected can happen. A tenant may be unable to pay the rent due to redundancy, accident, sickness, divorce, or even death. Not only might you suffer a shortfall in rental income but also legal costs are inevitably involved when a tenancy agreement is breached. Disputes can arise between landlords and tenants, for example, bringing action for unauthorised alterations to a property or unauthorised use of the property. Perhaps a tenant might withhold rent due to alleged deficiencies connected with the premises.

exclusive packages

Halfapercent are a registered MARAS letting agent. MARAS offer competitive and comprehensive Rental Guarantee & Legal Expenses policies. These are only available through letting agents registered with MARAS. These policies are available for both managed and let-only properties. The policies are underwritten by Pinnacle Insurance plc, a specialist creditor insurance company boasting a client portfolio which includes major banks, building societies, credit and retailer cards, and finance houses.

what are the benefits of using insurance from MARAS?

The benefit of MARAS Rental Guarantee & Legal Expenses insurance is that legal experts can be brought in at the onset of a problem. This means that matters can be resolved quickly; if necessary, the property can be swiftly re-let and in the meantime, you will have had the benefit of free legal advice, legal action and rental guarantee.

how do I apply for rental guarantee & legal expense insurance?

Once the tenants application for your property has been approved, you will receive a rental guarantee & legal expenses quotation from MARAS.

about MARAS

Letting agents that use MARAS have one thing in common; they demand and supply the highest standards in the industry. By ensuring that you use a MARAS agent, you are able to benefit from a professional service from the letting agent, and the unique range of MARAS products and services.

  • referencing
  • application tracker
  • rental guarantee & legal expenses insurance
how MARAS can help you

MARAS were one of the first companies operating in the credit sector to recognise the increasing professionalism of letting agents. MARAS have been providing services to letting agents for almost 10 years, acting for both independent and national companies.

MARAS provide a full report on potential tenants in an average of 2 working days.

Independent

MARAS provide an independent opinion as to the suitability of your prospective tenant. We cannot be influenced either:-

  • financially: as we operate on a flat fee basis per application. We do not increase our charges in line with the rental payable
  • personally: as we do not meet applicants face to face

We provide a purely factual report enabling agents and landlords to make informed decisions with the minimum of risk.

Specialists

The MARAS core business is the vetting of prospective tenants for rental property. MARAS do not manage properties themselves, concentrating their skills in providing a reliable and efficient service to our customers. Quite simply, our job is to process applications as efficiently and reliably as possible.

MARAS also have specialist personnel on hand to deal with applications from foreign nationals, limited companies and other firms. Our personnel are accountable for the reports they produce and make their judgement on the facts provided. We do not operate a point score system.

Revealing information

MARAS full referencing reports offer more than simply the taking up of references from previous landlords and employers.

MARAS do not take applications at face value, MARAS VERIFY all details and if they cannot verify the information supplied, for whatever reason, they dig deeper to uncover reasons why and report back to your letting agent with MARAS recommendations.

Complete service

MARAS enquiries and investigations build up a full and complete profile of the applicants' suitability, helping to eliminate the dishonest tenant. Some of the more common deceptions are;

  • Discrepancies in applicants' residential history
  • "Borrowed" identities
  • Undisclosed adverse credit history
  • Fictitious employers
  • Friends of the applicant posing as current landlords.

The criminal element

Unfortunately, the lettings market does attract a hardcore of fraudsters. One individual applied for tenancy via five separate letting agents who all referenced through MARAS. Once he was initially rejected, despite having altered information on the application form, MARAS database identified him and MARAS rejected his subsequent applications - perhaps he got lucky on his sixth attempt via an agent who did not use MARAS?

Accurate recommendations

MARAS have earned a reputation for a fast and accurate reporting service on potential tenants. The current default ratio on approved tenants is less than 1/3rd of 1%. As part of our commitment to you, a unique free pre-sue service is available should a tenant approved for the tenancy by MARAS prove troublesome.

Gradings explained

Category A
The application is truthful and the prospective tenant has adequate financial resources to cover the rent. During the course of our enquiries, nothing detrimental has been discovered.

Category B
The application is truthful but the prospective tenant is not considered to be sufficiently financially secure to meet the rental required. During the course of our enquiries, nothing detrimental has been discovered. MARAS will recommend that a suitable guarantor be supplied for Class B applicants. Halfapercent will get the tenants to provide a guarantor in this instance, and fully reference check them.

Category C
The application is not considered to be suitable for tenancy. This can be for a variety of reasons which may include;

  • Adverse references from previous landlords
  • Poor credit history
  • An untruthful application.

For further information regarding referencing, please ask your MARAS agent for the "Referencing Service" information sheet.

MARAS plus: A 6 month policy

In the event of a valid claim, landlords can expect to receive the normal monthly rental within 7 working days of the due date, with the 1st months rent claimed being excluded. In the event of non-payment or legal dispute covered by the policy, insurers will agree to pay up to £ 15,000 in total. Should the tenants be referenced for less than 6 months, the policy cover will be reduced accordingly. The policy can be applied to all residential properties regardless of the rental amount, with the maximum benefit being £ 2,500 pcm.

  • £15,000 cover as standard.
  • Up to £2,500 pcm rent guarantee benefit
  • Rent arrears during the 6 month policy covered, with the 1st months rent claimed being excluded.
  • Cover throughout the policy or until vacant possession obtained, whichever is the soonest.
  • Renewals of cover available.

Cost: £30.95 per policy

MARAS protect: A 12 month policy

Benefits and cover are the same as under MARASplus, with an increased period of insurance and an enhancement of the rental guarantee component. Rent arrears occurring during the 12 month policy are covered to a maximum of 6 months rent. Should the tenants be referenced for less than 12 months, the policy cover will be reduced accordingly. The policy can be applied to all residential properties regardless of the rental amount, with the maximum benefit being £2,500 pcm.

  • £15,000 cover as standard.
  • Up to £2,500 pcm rent guarantee benefit
  • Rent arrears during the 12 month policy covered to a maximum of 6 months rent, with the 1st months rent claimed being excluded.
  • Cover throughout the policy or until vacant possession obtained, whichever is the soonest.
  • Renewals of cover available.

Cost: £62.45 per policy

MARAS proVision: an enhanced 12 month policy

This policy has enhancements over MARASplus and MARASprotect. In the event of non-payment or legal dispute covered by the policy, insurers will agree to pay up to £50,000 in total, with the 1st months rent claimed being excluded. The policy can be applied on all residential properties regardless of the rental amount, with the maximum benefit being increased from £2,500 pcm to £4,000 pcm.

Should the tenants be referenced for less than 12 months, the policy cover will be reduced accordingly. Where insurers gain vacant possession during the policy term, and the property is in a condition to let and remains vacant, the landlord receives 100% of the rental in the 1st month, and 50% of the rental in the 2nd month.

  • £50,000 cover as standard.
  • Up to £4,000 pcm rent guarantee benefit
  • Rent arrears during the 12 month policy covered, with the 1st months rent claimed being excluded.
  • Cover throughout the policy or until vacant possession obtained, whichever is the soonest.
  • vacant possession payments available.
  • Renewals of cover available.

Cost: £480.00 per policy

frequently asked questions
   
Q What cleared funds must be obtained before a tenancy commences?
A It is a condition of the policy that the 1st months rental and dilapidation deposit has been paid before a tenancy commences.
   
Q When a claim is made, how quickly can I expect payment?
A In the event of a valid claim, landlords can expect to receive the normal monthly rental within 7 working days of the due date. Please note the 1st month's rent claimed is excluded.
   
Q Where the tenancy has already started, can I obtain insurance cover without any special terms being applied?
A Yes - provided that insurance is effected EITHER within one month from the start date of the tenancy OR before the second month's rent is due (the 1st month's rental having been paid in advance), whichever is the sooner.
   
Q Can insurance cover be obtained after the second month's rent payment has been made?
A Yes, however a 90 day exclusion will apply to the policy.
   
Q Can I renew the policy?
A Yes. Once your tenants have been successfully re-referenced, the insurance cover will be available.
   
Q Why is the MARASproVision policy so much more expensive than the other polities?
A The MARASproVision policy provides a monthly benefit of up to £4,000, covers up to £50,000 and also provides vacant possession payments.
   
Q Is I.D. required on the tenants?
A Normally, no. However, if the monthly rental is in excess of £2,000 pcm, copies of 2 forms of I.D. must be retained on each tenant.

why you should insure

Despite every care with the selection of a tenant and the management of your property. The unexpired can happen. Tenants may be unable to pay the rent due to redundancy, accident sickness separation divorce or even death.

The advantage of MARAS Rental Guarantee & Legal Expenses Insurance is that legal experts can be brought in at the onset of a problem. This means that matters can be resolved quickly; If necessary the property can be swiftly reIet and in the meantime, you will have had the benefit of free legal advice legal action and rental guarantee.

low cost packages

We are able to offer our rent guarantee and legal expenses insurances at extra' moly competitive rates because of our proven referencing arid buying power. Professional standards are maintained by our nationwide network of letting agents.

professional service

Our experienced staff will apply the usual rigorous criteria to compile our reference on your tenants.

With all enquiries subject to over 25 possible checks and cross referenced with our debase containing hundreds of thousands of records, you can rest assured that our comprehensive reports will guarantee your peace of mind.

how to obtain cover

Simply express your interest in MARAS rental guarantee and once the tenants application for your property has been approved, you will receive a quote and information from MARAS that allows you to select the policy that best suits your needs.