Owner Builder Insurance – Construction

Owner Builders Construction and Public Liability Insurance

Owner Builders Construction and Public Liability Insurance

Owner Builder Insurance – Construction & Public Liability Policy is designed for the owner builder, and unlike some standard policies, contains additional benefits.

It has many names, Contract Works, Site Insurance, Construction Insurance, Owner Builder Insurance, Builders Risk Contractors Allrisk. It provides cover for risks encountered whether you are building a new home, renovation or extending your home this includes cover for fire, storm, impact, wind and water damage, malicious damage, vandalism, theft including materials in the open air.

Public Liability can be the biggest financial risk for Owner Builders. Public Liability Insurance covers third party personal injury and property damage that occurs during the period of the policy for which you the Owner Builder are legally liable. As an Owner builder you are responsible for site safety and co-ordination of the building works and serious injuries and damage can occur on the smallest of projects.

What’s covered in the policy

Why choose BuildSafe?

  • Owner Builders can become confused into thinking each state has a different policy, not so at BuildSafe, we take the confusion out of Insurance, our experience and knowledgeable consultants have been
    helping and assisting Owner Builders for over 30 years.
  • Our Policy is Owner Builder specific, unlike other policies that are Builder policies and you pay for inclusions that you cannot claim on! PLUS our Policy contains some important additional benefits (see Bonus Cover).

Are you ready?

FAQ's

Got a Question about Owner Builder Construction and Public Liability Insurance? We’ve got the Answer!

Construction insurance protects the owner builder during the building process, including malicious damage/vandalism, theft, fire damage, storm, wind and water damage. The Buildsafe policy also provides cover for demolition costs and professional fees in the event of a major claim (for up to 10% of the insured construction value) at no additional premium, which ensures that you will not be left out of pocket if a major claim occurs.

Public Liability Insurance protects owner builders against third party personal injury and property damage, that occurs during the period of policy.

Buying Construction and Public Liability insurance is no different to shopping for a new car. A Hyundai Excel doesn’t have the same features and benefits of Holden Calais and therefore there is a substantial price difference. Price is important, but not all insurance policies are the same. There is no point in investing in a cheap insurance policy if it doesn’t fully protect you in the event of a substantial claimable occurrence… which is the primary reason for having a policy in the first place! A substantial financial loss on uninsured building works or liability would cause financial ruin to most owner builders.

Yes, while the builder should have Construction and public liability insurance in place, there will be no insurance once the project is at lock up.
Note well: it is very difficult for you as an Owner builder to find an insurer to supply you insurance at lock up the smartest thing to do is take out the insurance at commencement, even though you are doubling up, it will be a lot, cheaper to do it this way than try to obtain the insurance at lock up.

Yes, it is available, generally but it will cost more! DO NOT start your project before you have the insurance in place, if you want to save money.

No, not all Owner Builder policies are the same

So before you buy on price, check to see whether you have cover for –

Storm and Water damage
Flood
Is Extendable
Has a low excess (most claims are around $4000)
Subbies and not excluded
· Public Liability ($5, $10 and $20 million)
Will cover your existing home
Contents Cover
(optional) Voluntary Workers cover

We do!

For Example, if your sum insured is only 50% of the value of the property required to be insured at the time that the Insured Damage occurs, the Insurer will only cover a proportional amount of your loss, as set out below:
Full insurable value $100,000 Sum insured $50,000 (i.e. 50% of the full insurable value)
Amount of your loss $75,000 Amount the insurer will pay $37,500 (i.e. 50% of the loss less any excess

This means you will be responsible for 50% of the loss you suffer (as well as any applicable excess) because your sum insured was only 50% of the value of your property required to be insured.

It is vital that you check the specific policy wording of your Home and Contents Policy, as most insurers suspend the home insurance and public liability cover for renovation and extension work over a certain value or complexity. This could affect the cover to the existing house for loss or damage as direct result of the renovations or extensions. Public liability cover could also be affected. If you are renovating or extending you should check your current policy wording carefully. Contents cover now available. When renovating your home the greatest risk is from storm, wind and water damage. These are the most common insurance claims.

Yes, they are treated like a normal building project, you will require Owner Builder Construction and Public Liability Insurance.

This is known as the under-insuring trap. Do not try to save money by insuring your works for less than the actual replacement cost of a licensed builder carrying out the work. In the event of an indefinable event under the policy, (an event that is insured), and it is found that the sums insured are less than 90 percent of the amount required to be insured, the amount recoverable by you under this policy will be reduced by such proportions as the sums insured bear to 90 percent of the amount required to be insured.

Most policies on the market are builder policies, and the insurer does not want to make the owner builder specific because of the cost. Therefore they include such things as blasting or explosives, maintenance, underground works etc… which you are being charged for.
Will you be storing appliances, tiles etc off site, make sure the policy covers – principal (you) supplied materials.

i. Have a minimum of $5,000,000 public and products liability insurance and relevant employers liability insurance

ii. Conduct a thorough safety inspection of the Construction Site prior to beginning any work or delegating any work

iii. Be required to comply with all relevant safety requirements applicable to the work they will be conducting on the Construction Site; and

iv. Be accredited or licensed where applicable for the work they or persons under their instruction and/or employment are performing.

Yes, at Buildsafe Insurance Brokers our renovation Insurance does cover your contents. Don’t leave your valuable possessions uninsured while you are renovating.

Yes you are, our policy is unique and does protect you and your family in the event of a flood.

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Sarah A
Sarah A
26 September 2023
Fantastic team, fast, efficient and great communicators made the process very easy from start to finish
Kristy Taylor
Kristy Taylor
14 June 2023
It’s not very often you get prompt and lovely service these days. I found Buildsafe to be very helpful, respectful and courageous. I highly recommend them as they can’t be faulted. Thank you once again for your amazing assistance 🙏🏼
Kate Wilson
Kate Wilson
28 May 2023
I cannot speak highly enough of Buildsafe, and have no hesitations recommending them. After being stuffed around for over 10 weeks from another company who still hadn't processed our warranty insurance after all that time, Buildsafe processed ours within 1 HOUR!!!! Their service was impeccable and super efficient. Kim was so very helpful. I only wish I had known about them in the beginning. Thanks Kim & Buildsafe!
Ryan
Ryan
21 March 2023
Kim was an amazing help, I needed a quick turn around time for insurance builders insurance and she was able to deliver the same day. Thanks Kim for your help really are a life saver!
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Sjarif Abdat
21 August 2021
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John Zurmaman
3 July 2020
Best service, I was stressed trying to obtain my builders licence. Buildsafe eased my concerns and helped every step of the way. Thanks again cheers
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26 February 2020
After getting lost in the amount of quotes I had received from various brokers. The staff at BuildSafe were so helpful and really explained the process. It was an easy decision.
James Round
James Round
16 January 2019
I have been a client of BuildSafe for nearly 10 years and they look after all my business insurance needs. Their service is exceptional - thanks for doing such a great job and always looking after me!

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