Property Developers Insurance for development companies
Cover for development companies from site purchase to sale or letting: the works, any existing building, your liability as site owner and the units waiting to sell. A specialist broker can compare policies for each stage of the scheme.
- The scheme itself while it is being built
- Existing structures during conversion and refurbishment
- Liability as site owner, employer and developer
Reviewed October 2026 by the MyBusinessComparison.com editorial team
What is property developers insurance?
Property developers insurance is a set of covers for companies that buy land or buildings, build or convert, then sell or let. It typically protects the works in progress, any existing structure being converted, plant and materials, and the developer's liability to the public, neighbours and staff through to sale or letting.
A developer's risk changes as a scheme moves forward. A cleared site carries mainly liability, a scheme under construction carries fire, theft and weather risk to the works, and a finished building carries the risk of standing empty until it sells or lets. Good cover follows each stage without a gap between them.
Responsibility for insuring the works depends on the building contract. Where a main contractor builds the scheme, the contract decides whether the contractor or the developer insures the works and the existing building, so the contract should be read before any policy is chosen.
Property developers insurance at a glance
- Suits
- Residential, commercial and mixed use developers, including conversion specialists
- Core covers
- Contract works, existing structures, public and employers' liability
- Written as
- A policy for a single scheme or an annual policy for a programme of sites
- Often required by
- Development lenders, funders and building contracts
- Insurers look at
- Scheme value, build method, programme, site security and track record
- Arranged separately
- Structural warranties and latent defects cover for completed buildings
What does property developers insurance cover?
Most developers combine the sections below. Which ones you need depends on whether you build directly, appoint a main contractor or convert an existing building.
Contract works
Damage to the buildings going up, temporary structures and materials delivered to site from fire, storm, flood, theft and vandalism, until practical completion or handover.
Read more about contractors' all risks insurance
Existing structures
The original building during conversion or refurbishment. Many contractors' policies exclude it, so the developer is often left to insure it.
Read more about commercial property insurance
Public liability
Injury to visitors, trespassers and passers-by, and damage to neighbouring property caused by work on your site.
Read more about public liability insurance
Employers' liability
Claims from staff you employ directly on site or in the office. Developers with employees usually must hold this cover.
Read more about employers' liability insurance
Non-negligent liability
Damage to neighbouring buildings from collapse, subsidence or vibration that happens without anyone being negligent, a cover many building contracts ask the developer to buy.
Plant, tools and site huts
Owned and hired-in plant, cabins, scaffolding and tools, including the hire charges that continue while hired plant is replaced.
Read more about plant and machinery insurance
Delay in start-up
Income from sales or lettings that arrives late, plus additional interest on development finance, when insured damage during the build delays completion.
Completed and unsold units
Finished buildings and show units awaiting sale or letting, with conditions for security and inspection while they stand empty.
Read more about unoccupied property insurance
Additional cover for development companies
- Professional indemnity: design and project management advice given by your own team on design and build schemes
- Environmental liability: pollution and contamination found on or spreading from brownfield sites
- Legal expenses: disputes with contractors, purchasers and neighbours over the build
- Directors' and officers': claims against the directors of the development company or a joint venture
- Structural warranty: latent defects cover for completed buildings, usually arranged through a warranty provider and often needed by buyers' lenders
Who needs property developers insurance?
Any company that takes the development risk on land or buildings. These are the developers this cover is most often arranged for.
Main contractor rather than developer? Firms building for clients need construction company insurance with contractors' all risks cover.
- Housing developers: schemes of new homes from infill plots to phased estates, buying land, securing planning and selling or letting; firms that build the homes themselves can see house builders insurance
- Commercial developers: offices, industrial units, retail and leisure schemes built to sell or let
- Conversion specialists: offices, mills, chapels and barns turned into homes or workspace, where the existing building is a major value
- Mixed use developers: ground floor commercial space with apartments above, built or converted as one scheme
- Refurbishment developers: buildings bought to strip out, upgrade and resell or relet
- Land traders and promoters: sites held while planning is pursued, where liability and site security are the main risks
- Joint venture companies: special purpose companies set up for a single scheme with funders or landowners
- Investor developers: companies building or refurbishing to add finished property to their own portfolio
- Developers of listed buildings: heritage conversions where matching materials and specialist trades raise rebuild costs
- Developers working as their own main contractor: firms building their own schemes with directly employed labour and subcontractors
How much does property developers insurance cost?
Development premiums are largely driven by the scheme itself. These are the points insurers examine before they quote.
Scheme value and programme
The contract value of the works and the length of the build set the contract works premium, with longer programmes carrying more exposure.
Build method
Timber frame and modular schemes are assessed closely for fire during construction, as are basements, piling and work next to occupied buildings.
Existing structure
Conversions add the value of the original building and the risk of disturbing it, especially where the structure is old or listed.
Site security
Fencing, lighting, CCTV, alarms on plant and cabins, and how materials are stored after hours all affect theft and arson rating.
Experience and track record
Insurers weigh completed schemes, the competence of the site team and how subcontractors are vetted and insured.
Claims history and excess
Past losses across previous schemes, and the excess you are prepared to carry, shape the final terms.
What property developers insurance does not cover
Development claims are often disputed on these points, so they are worth settling before work starts.
- The cost of putting right defective design, materials or workmanship, although damage that results from a defect may be covered
- Existing buildings that are not declared and insured separately from the new works
- Damage to neighbouring property from subsidence or vibration where the non-negligent liability cover has not been bought
- Design errors by your own team, which need professional indemnity insurance
- Gradual pollution and historic contamination, unless environmental liability cover is in place
- Theft of materials or plant from an unsecured site, or breach of agreed security conditions
- Problems that surface once the building is finished and handed over, which are a matter for a structural warranty
Developer's own policy or the contractor's insurance?
When a main contractor builds the scheme, the building contract decides who insures what. This is how responsibility often falls.
| Feature | Developer's own policy | Main contractor's policy |
|---|---|---|
| New works | Insured by the developer when the contract says so | Commonly insured by the contractor on new build |
| Existing building | Usually the developer's responsibility | Often excluded from the contractor's cover |
| Site owner's liability | Covers the developer as landowner and employer | Covers the contractor's own work and staff |
| Delay to income | Delay in start-up can be added | Not normally included |
| Control of claims | The developer deals with the insurer directly | The developer relies on the contractor's insurer |
How to arrange property developers insurance
Development insurers need a clear picture of the scheme. Gather these before asking for quotes.
Describe the scheme
Location, what is being built or converted, number and type of units, build method and programme.
Set out the contract
Whether you use a main contractor or manage trades directly, and what the contract says about insuring the works.
Value the risk
Contract value, existing building value, plant and materials on site and any delay in start-up figure.
Detail the site
Neighbouring buildings, basements, demolition, security measures and any contamination.
Plan for completion
How long units are likely to stand empty, who insures them after handover and what warranty is in place.
Scheme about to start?
Describe the scheme, its value and the programme, and a specialist broker will work through the options.
Get a quoteProperty developers insurance FAQs
How much does property developers insurance cost?
The scheme sets most of the price: contract value, build method, programme length, any existing building, site security and your track record. Conversions and timber frame schemes attract particular scrutiny, and your broker can point out where the premium is coming from.
Do I need contract works cover if my contractor has insurance?
It depends on the building contract. On many new build contracts the contractor insures the works, but on conversions the developer is often responsible for the existing building and sometimes the works too. Read the insurance clauses with your broker before relying on the contractor's policy.
What is non-negligent liability cover and do I need it?
It covers damage to neighbouring property caused by the works, such as subsidence or collapse, where nobody was negligent. Ordinary public liability only pays when you are liable, usually through negligence. Building contracts often require the developer to buy it where works are close to other buildings.
Is the existing building covered during a conversion?
Not automatically. A contractor's policy often excludes existing structures, and a standard property policy may not respond once major works begin. The existing building usually needs to be declared and insured specifically for the duration of the works.
Can I get an annual policy for several developments?
Yes. Developers with a steady programme of schemes often buy an annual policy that covers projects up to an agreed contract value, declaring each new site as it starts. Larger or unusual schemes may still need a dedicated policy.
What happens to cover when a scheme is finished?
The works cover usually ends at practical completion or handover. Unsold or unlet units then need property cover, often with unoccupancy conditions, until they sell or a tenant moves in. Arrange this before completion so there is no gap.
Is a structural warranty the same as developers insurance?
No. A structural warranty covers defects in a completed building for a set number of years after completion and protects buyers and lenders. Developers insurance protects the developer during the build. Lenders on new homes usually expect a warranty to be in place.
Do I need cover for a site that is waiting for planning permission?
Usually, yes. Even an empty site carries liability for trespassers and neighbours, and any existing buildings face arson and vandalism. Insurers can provide liability and property cover for held land, with security conditions.
Does property developers insurance suit housing developers?
Yes. Housing developers use it to cover the site, the homes under construction and liability through to sale. Where your own teams build the homes, insurers also look at the construction risk, and a house builders policy may fit better, so explain who carries out the build.
How do I get a property developers insurance quote?
A request from this page goes to a specialist broker, who will ask about the scheme, contract value, programme, build method, the insurance clauses in the building contract, site security and schemes you have completed.
Ready to compare property developers insurance?
Works, existing buildings, liability and unsold units covered from site purchase to sale, compared by a specialist broker.