commercial building insurance uk quotations

Commercial Building Insurance UK

Instant quotations for over 200 types of properties

Quotations available for properties in excess of Ł5,000,000 sum insured

Minimum premium of Ł250.00

Comprehensive package as standard including Loss of Rent at 20%, Subsidence, Property Owners Liability at Ł2,000,000 and much more

Wide variety of optional extensions available including Landlords Contents, Accidental Damage, Legal Expenses and Terrorism

Discounted multi location policies available

Experienced underwriters on hand with authority for instant decisions

No claims bonus available

Multi location discounted policies available

24hr dedicated claims service and legal helpline

Index linked policy

The commercial property owners insurance policy is extremely vast and includes cover for shops, offices, restaurants, manufacturers, processing risks, leisure risks, wholesale warehouses, religious properties, take-aways, pubs, and much much more. To make things simple, there is no postcode rating so no matter where the risk is located the quotation will remain at the same rate.

Introduction - When providing quotations for commercial property insurance, the insurance company will take a number of factors in to consideration when calculating their premium. Firstly they will want to know the construction of the building. If it is made from bricks or stone and roofed with metal or slates or tiles then that is generally considered to be standard construction. If the property is not purpose built and has a flat felt on timber roof then loadings may apply. The insurer will also want to know if the floors are concrete or made of wood. Secondly, the use of the building has an effect on the insurance, in simple the terms to higher the chance of their being a fire, the higher the commercial building insurance premium. Other factors are also taken in to consideration such as the age of the building, the postcode ( which helps determine the susceptibility to flooding or subsidence claims) and previous claims experience.

Office Buildings - Commercial buildings used as offices are generally considered to be the safest risk when it comes to insurance. There are almost no trade processes carried out in an office and their primary design is to provide a workplace and a working environment for administrative workers. Although some are made from converted houses or former factor premises, the bulk of office space in the united kingdom is purpose built and of several floors in construction. Often a company will buy an office block and occupy one or more of the floors then rent the remaining portion of the building to a tenant. Office blocks are popular with companies and they often contain reception areas and catering units. As well as office insurance for the bricks and mortar of an office block, insurance can be arranged to cover the lifts and and boilers for engineering inspection cover. Because office space is mainly used for clerical purposes, often insurers do not make the distinction between buildings that are owner occupied or rented out. Attention should always be paid to the loss of rent section of the building though, it is sometimes possible for tenants to obtain increase cost of working cover under their own business contents insurance policy which will help them find temporary alternative accommodation in the event of a serious claim.

Warehouse - A warehouse is a form of commercial building that is used for storing goods. Many have an area that is set aside for use as an office. Warehouses are used by a variety of trades including; manufacturers, importers, exporters wholesalers, transport companies and customs ( bonded warehouses). Usually they are not constructed to the same high standards as other types of commercial buildings and are mainly found away from town centres where access is easier and land prices are cheaper. Warehouses are frequently constructed of concrete block with a corrugated roof. Standard building insurance perils can be obtained in most cases although the insurer will certainly want to know the type of items being stored at the premises. Good access to this type of building is of paramount importance, goods are usually stored on pallet racks to facility easy lifting by fork lift truck on to road or rail transport. Although a good deal of warehouses still exist in the United Kingdom, they have been in decline for over a decade. Nowadays it is not considered economical to stock pile goods and delivery direct from the factory is considered the most economically viable option. One type of warehouse that has seen a large increase in numbers in recent years is the out of town retail warehouse often selling goods located on tall metal shelving, several well known companies have cornered the market selling DIY products on this basis and a visit to one on a Sunday morning to buy anything from a new kitchen to painting & decorating items is a very popular event. Located out of town and where land prices are cheaper, stores are able to buy land at cheaper prices and thus combine a warehouse and retail outlet in one. Consumers have shown that for the right prices and access to free easy parking they are quite willing to shop further field.

Retail Shop - The most popular form of commercial building in the United Kingdom is the good old retail shop. We are after all a nation of shopkeepers and every high street in the country is lined with shops of all sizes and descriptions selling every kind of goods or merchandise. Shops vary from the small purpose built kiosk that you often see sighted at railway stations, airports or in the pedestrianised areas of shopping malls or arcades. These are usually catering or gift vendors or newspaper sellers. Your traditional shop is located on most high streets and will often be converted from a former domestic dwelling house. Often a portion of the roof will be flat as invariably the property will have been extended over the course of its life. Upstairs you will often find self continued flats, these are usually rented out on an assured short hold tenancy agreement or sometimes used for storage of the shops goods. Larger department stores occupy purpose built buildings in towns and cities although in smaller towns, the tendency now is to relocate to an out of location where land is cheaper and larger buildings can be constructed using modern building techniques and perhaps not having to be quite so sympathetic to other properties in the area. Planning considerations are also somewhat more relaxed at out of town sites. e for shops is very easy to obtain, a full range of perils is available for either landlords or owner occupiers. This type of shop insurance does need a little explaining as a modern retailers insurance policy wording comes with a number of different sections and discussions need to take place to make sure that the correct cover is provided.

Factory - Previously known as a manufactory, these properties with their demand for large amounts of labour were often constructed in urban areas or indeed as is the case with the Cadbury factory at Bournville in Birmingham, they became their own " urbanization". Nowadays , these building differ little from warehouses in their construction and again are usually sighted away from towns on industrial parks or on cheaper brown fill land. One aspect where they do differ is that although goods are often stored at the premises, they are also made at the premises so any insurer will want to know exactly the type of trade processes that are being carried. Again a full range of factory insurance perils will be required and it is possible to combine the insurance of the building with cover for the trade contents and goods. Often an insurer will insist on a stillage warranty being applied to the insurance of goods and insisting that they are stored on either 6 inch or 12 inch pallets is not unusual. This can help keep the cost of claims down which in turn helps to keep premiums at a realistic level. Many factories and in fact warehouses are now fitted with modern sprinkler leakage systems . These are excellent at minimising the damage caused by fire. Most insurance polices will allow you to insure against accidental sprinkler leakage although you will have to carry our regular checks to make sure that the system is in working order and an annual maintenance check is usually also required. Today the output of factories is controlled by legislation and some of the worst excess of the industrial age have been curbed, insurers have developed policy wordings over the years to ensure that pollution exclusions are written in to most contracts.

Surgeries - The word surgery comes the Greek word for hand work and is usually related to medical practice work. However buildings used as surgeries can range from a doctors or a dentists through to all manner of complimentary therapies and even veterinary surgeries. Most of the surgery buildings are of standard construction and a full range of building perils is available. If the occupant of the building wants his or her practice insured then this is usually arranged under a separate policy which depending on their trade may be able to include the necessary liability insurance over.

Hotels & Guest Houses - Although it can be argued that guest houses could in theory be insured on a standard building insurance policy (subject to warranties and restrictions, most are now insured under bespoke policy wordings. Large hotel chains tend to go for purpose built buildings , many have facilities for guests including swimming pools and tennis courts. However your traditional family run hotel or guesthouse tends to be formed from a converted large house. Hotel Insurance can be obtained on its own or as part of a business package as the vast majority of these business are owner run establishments.

Restaurants & Takeaways - As with shops, no high street in Britain is complete without a restaurant and Take away establishment. Again, these are seldom purpose built buildings and in some cases ( mainly fish & chip shops) part of a house is used for the catering business. The preparation and sale of food is very diverse especially today in multicultural Britain. Even buildings used as fish & chip shops can be insured with a standard set of perils although all policies come with various warranties which detail the usage and maintenance of extraction equipment. The rating of building insurance for this sector of the commercial property insurance market relies to a great extent on the actual type of catering that is being carried out on the premises, tea rooms or cafes with no basket fryers or deep fat fryers are the cheapest to insure with fish & chip shops at the other end of the scale. As there is a tendency for this class of commercial property insurance to produce fire claims, special attention should be paid to the business interruption section of the policy to make sure that adequate insurance protection is in force.

Gymnasiums & Leisure Centres - Although mainly operated by local authorities, there are a large number of health and fitness centres springing up all over the country . As well as standard commercial building insurance cover, many of these establishments will need some engineering inspection cover for much of the equipment that is provided. Swimming pool pumps etc may also need to be inspected. There are of course other types of risk that can be included as commercial buildings including schools, colleges, hospitals, religious establishments, petrol stations garages, showrooms, airports, the list is almost endless.

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Assetsure is an Appointed Representative of Intasure, a trading name of Blenheim Park Limited who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Assetsure Limited is an appointed representative of Highhouse Insurance Services Limited who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.