In construction, days sometimes pass between signing the contract and starting work – plan for cover to already be running by the time you take possession of the site. For work that's already under way, cover can, at best, be arranged through individual underwriting, with a "no known loss" declaration and typically a loading – but a loss that has already happened can never be insured. This article makes the inception process and its timing plannable – from the normal case to the "we start tomorrow" scenario.
- Cover should already be running by the time the site is taken over – that's the planning anchor.
- The normal timeline: data → quotes → decision → inception → policy and certificate; most of the time is taken up by the quote round.
- There's a routine for urgent cases too – but rushing takes its toll on the accuracy of the details.
- Having the premium settled in an orderly way can be a condition for cover and for issuing a certificate.
The normal process
The chain: project data and needs assessment (article) → competing quotes and the comparison table → your decision → inception (signing the quote, finalising the data) → policy, settling the premium, certificate. Most of the lead time comes from the quote round – insurers' risk assessment depends on the project. The planning rule: start the insurance track alongside the contract preparation, not after it.
From when does cover run?
The policy fixes the start of the period of cover – typically from the stated date, but never before inception. The anchor is taking over the site: cover should be in place for that day. The details are unpacked in the start-and-end article; the essence, in one sentence: policy first, then the first spade in the ground – the other way round is a gamble with the company's balance sheet.
The "we start tomorrow" scenario
It happens: the tender dragged on, the contract was signed yesterday, the site handover is tomorrow. There's still a route even then – a fast-tracked data round, discussion narrowed to the essence of the risk, urgency flagged to the insurer in advance – but two costs need to be weighed: the room for competing quotes narrows, and details (the exact content of extensions) may need fine-tuning later. The lesson isn't that "it can't be done", but that the same thing can end up costing more later. That's why, on a tender project, the insurance track is an early line on the checklist.
After inception, before work starts
The short checklist for before work starts: policy (or confirmation of cover) in hand; premium settled as required by the wording; certificate submitted to the client/awarding body; the wording's requirements (security, protective measures, logging) shared with the site management – loss-prevention checklist; and someone named as responsible for change notification. From here on, the cover isn't paperwork – it's a working system.
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