What is Construction Business Insurance?

If you run a business in the building and construction trade, you’ll already know how important it is to take out the right construction insurance cover to ensure you can keep your company afloat should the unexpected happen.

Whether you’re a limited company employing staff or a sole trader operating on a freelance basis, the right insurance policy will cover you for the kinds of risks inherent in the building and construction trade.

Let’s look more closely at what you need to consider when you’re shopping around for insurance quotes for your building or construction business.

Liability insurance: because sometimes, accidents happen

Building sites are dangerous places, so public liability insurance is particularly important. It will cover you in the event that a member of a public (such as a customer) is injured, or their property is damaged, because of something your business has done.

It’s vital to ensure that your construction insurance policy covers building and construction sites, as these are riskier places that may be excluded from some policies. You can read more about why public liability insurance is so important here.

Legal expenses Insurance will cover your legal fees should you find yourself being sued by a customer for losses they may have incurred as a result of a mistake you made in the course of your building and construction work.

If you employ staff, you are legally required to have employers’ liability insurance to cover you, in the case that an employee is injured or causes an accident involving the public while working for you.

Don’t forget yourself, too; personal accident cover is there to help if you’re injured at work and have to take a break to recover, and it typically covers medical expenses and lost earnings.

Insuring the tools of the trade

It’s not just accidents that your business needs to consider. Your tools, plant and machinery are essential to the running of your business, and would be costly to replace if they were stolen or damaged.

Taking out tools, plant and machinery insurance will give you the peace of mind that the expense of replacing lost, stolen or damaged equipment won’t leave you out of pocket.

It’s important to have a clear idea of how much it would cost to replace your equipment so that you can ensure you get enough cover.

Contractors All Risk (CAR) Insurance

This is cover and protection against the damage or physical loss of the works that are being done.

This helps pay for the replacement or repair of insured work that’s been damaged by an insured event, this means that any damage to insured work will be covered, unless caused by an exclusion of the policy.

CAR cover however, does not cover everything and is not a catch all insurance policy, remember it is only for works being undertaken.

Unless stated by an extension of CAR insurance, it won’t include:

  • Damage to existing structures
  • Professional indemnity
  • Damages for liquidation
  • Act of neglect
  • Loss of profit or revenue
  • Cost of repairs due to defective design, plan, specifications, materials or workmanship.

You will need to take out additional cover for these if they’re required.

Get a quote for construction insurance today

Get in touch today for a tailored tradesman insurance quote to find a policy that’s right for you and your building or construction business.

Complete our Get a Quote form and we’ll get back to you with a no-obligation quote, or speak to one of our business insurance experts straightaway on [tracker-toll-free-phone].