Real Estate Blog: Insurance. Have you got it covered?

If you are an owner or occupier of a commercial property, when was the last time you reviewed your insurance cover?

Recent research has concluded that over 40% of commercial properties are currently underinsured, with this mainly being down to the rising costs of building materials and the cost of labour.In the last 12 months over 4 in 10 commercial property owners who have repaired or rebuilt their commercial premises were underinsured. For those letting out their premises, commercial leases often provide that any shortfall in the insurance proceeds is to be made up by the landlord and so landlords run the risk of having to put their hands in their pockets, due to their failure to check whether the cover they have in place is sufficient. Although an increase in cover is likely to lead to an increased premium, the cost can normally be passed on to the tenant and so there are no excuses for a landlord!From an occupier's point of view, claims managers are saying that it is taking longer to complete commercial property repairs, due to supply-chain issues and a lack of available construction workers. So although your business may have business interruption cover in place, have you reviewed the length of the period of interruption that is covered by your policy?Whether you are an owner or an occupier, even if your policy renewal date is not imminent, dust off the policy schedule and check whether the cover you have is sufficient should the unfortunate happen and you need to bring a claim. It could be an expensive thing to overlook!

Please get in touch with Partner, Guy Winfield if you would like any further information or advice on this topic.