The following is a general description of the features and benefits typically available to policyholders. It is NOT intended to be a complete summary of the policy cover available as such cover will vary between Insurers. With each quotation provided by Aldium a Key Facts Summary of Cover will be supplied for the particular Insurer recommended.
Property Cover
Typical Insured Perils:
- Fire, Lightning, Earthquake, Explosion
- Theft/Attempted Theft
- Strike, Riot, Civil Commotion (Excluding Northern Ireland)
- Malicious Persons or Vandals
- Flood, Storm
- Escape of Water or oil from specified installations
- Accidental Loss, Destruction or Damage
- Subsidence, Ground Heave, Landslip
- Aircraft and aerial devices dropped from aircraft
- Impact
Buildings
Cover is applied to the physical premises of the business including outbuildings, fences, walls, gates and fixtures & fittings up to the specified sum insured.
Contents
Cover for contents within the premises relating to the business for which you are legally and financially responsible up to the specified sum insured. Contents of common parts includes your maintenance and cleaning equipment, and the furniture and furnishings of common parts. The policy can be extended upon request to include contents of furnished and tenanted accommodation.
Typical Extensions:
- Additional costs relating to EU and Local Authority Regulations.
- Debris Removal – costs and expenses necessarily incurred in removing debris, dismantling and/or demolishing, shoring up or propping up of the portion(s) of the property insured by the said items destroyed or damaged by any insured peril.
- Architects & Surveyors Fees necessarily and reasonably incurred in the reinstatement of the buildings consequent upon its damage by an insured peril.
- Capital Additions – cover for new, acquired or extended buildings including machinery and plant.
- Tenants’ Subrogation Waiver – following damage to any building insured by the Property Cover, insurers agree to waive any rights to recoveries from the tenant as long as the tenant contributes to the cost of insuring against the event which causes the damage.
- Trace and Access – costs incurred in tracing the source of water or oil damage.
- Private Residences – Temporary Accommodation - reasonable and necessary residents’ temporary accommodation and storage of furniture.
- Clearing of Drains – charges for clearing or repairing drains as a result of insured damage.
- Damage to the Buildings by Theft – following theft or attempted theft of the fabric of the building.
- Terrorism (Optional)
Typical Exclusions:
- Unoccupied & unused properties.
- Theft from unoccupied & unused properties.
- Theft that does not involve entry or exit from the premises by forcible and violent means or that does not involve actual or threatened assault or violence or use of force.
- Theft by an employee or person (other than a tenant) lawfully on the premises.
- Storm or flood damage to fences, gates and moveable property in the open or open sided buildings, unless cover is specifically included.
- Terrorism in Northern Ireland.
- Excesses as specified in individual policy schedules per Insurance Company.
- £1,000 subsidence excess typical.
- Inherent vice, latent defect, gradual deterioration, wear and tear or frost.
- Faulty or defective design, materials, workmanship, or operational error on the part of the Policyholder or any of his/her Employees.
- Damage caused by rust, dry rot, shrinkage, evaporation – Gradually operating causes.
Equipment Breakdown
Cover is for machinery and computer equipment in the premises for the use of the business.
- Lifts.
- Central heating or air conditioning systems.
- Boilers are covered for breakdown and explosion.
- Security and sound systems.
- Computers.
- Expediting expenses to speed up repair or replacement, and in making temporary repairs.
- Loss avoidance costs incurred in taking exceptional measures to prevent or reduce a loss.
- Rental income – loss of income and other costs following the breakdown of equipment.
Typical Exclusions:
- Computer viruses.
- Wear & Tear.
- Premises unoccupied & unused.
Loss of Rent
Cover in order to maintain your rental income following a fire or other insured peril. A claim must be accepted under the Property Cover section of the policy. Also pays for the reasonable extra costs to minimise your loss of rent. Cover is provided up to a period, which can be 12 months, 18 months, 24 months or 36 months (the ‘maximum indemnity period’).
Typical Extensions:- Additional Increase in Cost of Working – this is an additional expenditure, which is reasonably incurred, in order to reduce a loss.
- Rent Reviews – an automatic increase to cover rent reviews during the indemnity period.
- Managing Agents Charges incurred in re-letting the premises following insured damage.
- Managing Agents Premises – covers your losses following damage at the premises of your managing agents.
- Prevention of Access – loss of rent arising out of access to the premises being prevented or hindered as a result of damage by the risks insured to neighbouring property, or following action of the government, police or local authority due to an emergency lasting over 4 hours.
- Loss of Investment Income – loss of income arising because claim settlement is made later than the date rent would have been received.
Liability Cover
Employers’ Liability
Covers your legal liability for accidents to or illness, disease or death of employees, sustained in the course of their employment.
Limit of Indemnity - £10,000,000
- Unsatisfied Court Judgements offers indemnity in respect of non-payment of awards made against third parties in favour of an insured employee.
- Compensation for Court Attendance.
- Health and Safety at Work – Legal Defence Costs.
- Corporate Manslaughter Defence – cover for defence in respect of a prosecution, or appeal against conviction resulting from prosecution brought for a breach of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007.
Exclusions:
- Road Traffic Legislation – no indemnity will be provided in respect of any liability in respect of bodily injury for which you are required to arrange motor insurance or security in accordance with any road traffic legislation within the European Union.
- Offshore Work.
Public/Property Owners Liability
Covers your legal liability as owner (but not as occupier) of the property following accidental bodily injury to third parties or for
damage to their property, plus legal costs and expenses. Limit of Indemnity - £2,000,000, £5,000,000 or £10,000,000
Typical Extensions:
- Compensation for court attendance.
- Unsatisfied court judgements offers indemnity in respect of non-payment of awards made against third parties in favour of an insured employee.
- Defective Premises Act 1972 – cover for liability incurred in respect of property disposed of by the policyholder.
- Cross Liabilities – indemnity for each party to the other as if a separate policy had been issued to each partner.
- Data Protection Act 1998 – cover for your legal liability to pay damages and claimant’s costs and expenses for damage or distress as described in Section 13 of the Data Protection Act 1988.
- Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974 – cover for your legal costs and expenses incurred with the defence of any criminal proceedings or an appeal against a conviction arising from such proceedings brought by a breach.
- Part II of the Consumer Protection Act 1987 - cover for your legal costs and expenses incurred with the defence of any criminal proceedings or an appeal against a conviction arising from such proceedings brought by a breach.
- Indemnity to Principal -Indemnity for any principal for whom the policyholder is carrying out work under contract.
Typical Exclusions:
- Offshore work.
- Fines & Penalties.
- Liability for the sale or supply of products.
- Any claims relating to Asbestos.
Legal Expenses
Cover for legal fees, compensation awards and appeals from legal disputes you are involved in up to the specified amount in the
policy schedule.
Typical Cover:
- Employment Disputes - for defending your legal rights in a dispute with an employee arising from their dismissal or redundancy, or any other legal proceedings relating to their contract of employment. Cover includes defence of your legal rights against a prospective employee claiming sex discrimination.
- Compensation Awards - for any case taken up by insurers under Employment Disputes, Insurers will pay any compensation award made at Tribunal should you lose the case.
- Services Occupancy - to pursue your legal rights against an employee or ex-employee to recover possession of premises which are owned by you or for which you are responsible.
- Legal Costs - for defence of criminal prosecutions brought by the Police, the Health & Safety Executive and/or Local Authority Health & Safety Enforcement Officer.
- Bodily Injury - to negotiate for you and your family members’ legal rights following an event which causes death of or bodily injury to them.
- Tax and VAT enquiries - to represent your rights throughout an enquiry by HM Revenue & Customs into your business accounts (and PAYE or Social Security contributions). Also to represent your rights in appeals against VAT assessments.
Optional Extensions:
- Property Protection - cover for any civil action relating to material property owned or for which you are responsible following an event which may cause physical damage to that property or nuisance or trespass.
- Contract Disputes - to pursue or defend a claim for the sale, hire or purchase of goods and services.
- Debt Recovery - to help to recover money and interest due from the sale or provision of goods or services.
- Statutory Licence Protection - for appeals following loss of licence or British Standard Certificate of Registration.
Typical Exclusions:
- Claims arising within a specified time from inception of the policy as stated in the policy schedule.
- Claims relating to redundancy.
- Fines and Penalties.
- Legal Action without agreement from the Legal Expenses Insurer.
- Debts of less than a specified amount as stated within the policy schedule or older than 90 days.
- Disputes over breaches of Professional Duty.
- Dishonest and Criminal Offences.
Additional Benefits include:
- Free 24 hour helpline service.
- Legal Advice on any commercial legal problem relating to your organisation within the EU, the Isle of Man, Channel Islands, Switzerland and Norway.
- Tax Advice on any tax matters affecting your organisation, under the laws of the United Kingdom.
- Counselling available for all your employees and their immediate family who live with them.
General Exclusions (typical)
Accident, injury, loss, damage or liability from the following are generally excluded from insurance policies:
- War, invasion, revolution or similar event.
- Ionising radiations or radioactive contamination.
- Pollution or contamination.
- Terrorism.
- Pressure waves from aircraft or other aerial devices travelling at sonic or supersonic speeds.
- Fines and Penalties.
- Date recognition.
General Conditions (typical)
- Misrepresentation and Misdescription – the policy shall be voidable in the event of misrepresentation misdescription or non-disclosure
- Precedents to Liability – observance and fulfilment of the terms of the policy shall be conditions precedent to any liability.
- Reasonable Care – you shall take all reasonable precautions to prevent any forms of loss.
- Alteration of Risk – Immediate notice must be given to the Insurer of any material alteration to the risk.
- Unoccupied Buildings (or portions) – you must inform the insurer immediately if the premises or portion of the premises becomes unoccupied.
- Warranties – Non-compliance with any warranty in so far as it increases the risk of damage shall be a bar to any claim in respect of such damage.
- Multiple Insurances – if there are any other insurances in force covering the same damage or liability the insurer shall not be liable for more than their rateable proportion.
- Fraud –all benefit under the policy shall be forfeited in the event of fraud.
- Arbitration - if any difference shall arise as to the amounts that should be paid under the policy, such difference shall be resolved by arbitration in accordance with the statutory provisions in force at the time by an arbitrator agreed by both parties or appointed by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.
- Cancellation – you may cancel the policy provided you give notice in writing. As long as you have not made a claim you will receive a refund of the part of your premium which covers the cancelled period, subject to minimum and deposit premium not applying. In circumstances other than any alteration of the risk, the insurer may cancel the policy or any section of the policy by sending seven days notice by recorded delivery to you at your last known address and shall refund you the proportionate premium for the unexpired period of cover .
- Felt Roof Condition – it is a condition precedent to liability that if any building has a felt roof where the mineral felt surface has not been replaced for seven years, then the roof must be inspected annually by a competent roofing contractor.
Wherever Typical Extensions & Typical Exclusions are recorded above, it should be noted that they do not represent a complete list of all policy extensions/exclusions and neither do all insurers provide/impose all of the above. They are intended to be representative of the most significant extensions/exclusions which usually appear. You should also read the General Conditions and General Exclusions sections of any relevant policy.