Commercial coverage
Builders Risk Insurance for New Construction and Renovations
Builders risk insures the building while it is being built or substantially renovated. The owner, the general contractor, or both may be responsible for buying it; the contract decides. The policy should cover the structure, materials on site and in transit to the site, and temporary structures that support the work.
We place builders risk for small-commercial and mid-market projects — tenant improvements, ground-up shops and offices, restaurant build-outs, and light commercial ground-ups. We write the coverage the contract actually assigns, not a generic GC package that leaves the owner unnamed.
A builders risk form is usually written for a project term and a completed-value limit. Soft costs (interest, extra architect fees, delayed opening) and delay-in-completion can be added when the financing or the lease requires them. Flood and earthquake are usually optional and location-specific.
Installation floaters and contractors equipment are companions, not substitutes. The builders risk is the building. The floater is the trade's materials before they become part of the building, or the equipment used to install them. We place both when a contractor is performing and insuring installation.
Occupancy before the policy is converted to permanent property coverage is a claim-killer. We calendar the expected completion date and the permanent-property bind so there is not a Friday vacancy between the two.
- New construction and renovations Ground-up and major tenant-improvement or remodel projects on a completed-value form.
- Materials and temporary structures On-site, in-transit, and staging-area materials plus scaffolding and temp works the form allows.
- Soft costs and delay Financing and delayed-opening exposures when the lender or the lease requires them.
- Named insureds Owner, GC, and lenders as the contract and the mortgage require — not as a last-minute certificate edit.
Frequently asked questions
Who buys the builders risk — owner or GC?
The construction contract says. Many private jobs make the owner purchase it and name the GC; many public and larger private jobs make the GC purchase it. We read the exhibit before we bind.
Does the GC's general liability cover the building under construction?
GL covers liability to others, not the project property. If a fire destroys the framed structure, that is a builders risk claim, not a GL claim.
When does builders risk end?
At expiration, occupancy, or when the interest transfers — whichever the form uses. Permanent commercial property needs to be bound before that happens.
Are theft of materials and wind damage included?
On a special-form project policy, often yes, subject to site-security conditions and deductibles. Named-perils project forms are leaner. We prefer special form unless the project economics say otherwise.
Related coverage, industries, and locations
Inland Marine
Tools, equipment, cargo, installation jobs, and property that moves — the coverage a building policy leaves behind.
Coverage detailsGeneral Liability
Third-party injury, property damage, and products/completed-operations protection for shops, offices, and jobsites.
Coverage detailsSurety Bonds
License and permit bonds, contract bonds, and business service bonds for trades and service companies.
Coverage detailsCommercial General Contractor
GL, builders risk, auto, surety, and multi-state WC/stop-gap for commercial GCs — not a handyman policy.
Industry pageCarpenter
Finish and framing carpenters: GL, tools, a license bond, and the completed-operations file a handyman policy skips.
Industry pageDrywall Contractor
Completed-operations GL, tools, and the dust-and-jobsite file for hanging and finishing crews.
Industry pageWashington
Licensed commercial insurance broker serving Washington.
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