United Kingdom. Self build and custom build projects
Self build insurance: which covers do you actually need?
Self build insurance is not one product. It is a set of separate covers that start and stop at different moments, and the two that cause the most expensive problems are the ones people arrange last: employers liability, which is a legal duty the moment anyone works under your direction, and a structural warranty, which usually cannot be bought once the house is finished because the provider has to inspect the build. This page sets out what each cover does, when it has to exist, and where they commonly leave a gap.
| Option | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Site and works insurance Every self build, from the day materials arrive | The works themselves and the materials on site, against fire, flood, storm, theft and malicious damage, including materials that are not yet fixed in place. | From the moment anything of value is delivered, which is usually before the first block is laid. Cover that starts at the build start date leaves the delivery window uninsured. | You as the policyholder, and normally any contractor working on the site. Where a contractor carries their own cover, check whether it extends to the permanent works or only to their own plant. | Theft of materials not yet fixed, and plant hired in. Both are commonly excluded or sub-limited, and both are what actually gets stolen from a building site. | Entirely separate. This covers damage during the build; a structural warranty covers defects afterwards. Neither substitutes for the other. | Does cover include unfixed materials, hired-in plant, and works left unattended over a shutdown period? |
| Public liability Any site a third party could reach, which is every site | Injury to third parties and damage to their property arising from the works. A neighbour, a passer-by, a delivery driver, an adjoining building. | From first access to the site, before any works begin. Site clearance and survey visits are already exposure. | You, and each contractor separately under their own policy. A contractor's public liability does not cover your liability as the person who commissioned the works. | The limit. Adjoining-property damage in a terrace or a party-wall situation escalates far beyond what a low limit will meet. | Unrelated. A warranty is about the finished structure, not about someone being hurt during the build. | What limit of indemnity, and is it per claim or in the aggregate for the policy period? |
| Employers liability The moment anyone works on site under your direction | Injury or illness to people working for you. In Great Britain it is a legal requirement for employers, and the definition of who counts as an employee is broader than most self builders expect. | Before the first person works under your direction, including labour-only subcontractors and, in many circumstances, friends and family helping out. | Anyone working under your control. A bona fide subcontractor carrying their own cover is different from labour-only help, and the distinction is about control rather than about what the invoice says. | Assuming that because everyone is a subcontractor none of it applies. Whether someone is your employee for this purpose is a question about how the work is directed. | Unrelated. | Given how my trades are engaged, does this policy respond, and does it cover labour-only subcontractors and unpaid help? |
| Structural warranty Anyone who will sell, mortgage or let the finished house | Defects in the completed structure for a period of years after completion, typically ten. It is a warranty product, not a works insurance. | Arranged BEFORE the build starts, because the provider inspects during construction. It cannot usually be bought retrospectively once the house is finished. | You, and it passes to a purchaser on sale, which is why lenders want it. | Leaving it too late. This is the single most common and most expensive self build insurance mistake, because most lenders will not offer a mortgage on a newly built home without one. | It IS the warranty. The point to understand is that it must run alongside the build, not follow it. | At what stage must the first inspection happen, and what is the latest point at which you can still take me on? |
| Non-standard buildings insurance at completion Every self build, at the point it becomes a home | The finished building on an ordinary home insurance basis, though frequently on non-standard terms while the property is new, unoccupied or of unusual construction. | At practical completion, replacing site and works cover. A gap between the two is a genuine uninsured period and it happens more often than it should. | You, and any lender will want its interest noted. | Unoccupancy. A finished but empty house is a materially different risk and many standard policies restrict cover after 30 to 60 days empty. | Sits alongside it. The warranty handles defects; this handles perils. | How long can the property stand unoccupied before cover is restricted, and what conditions apply during that period? |
When each self build cover has to be in place, and what it leaves out, 2026
Last updated
Almost every expensive self build insurance problem is a timing problem rather than a pricing one. This table puts the covers in project order with the moment each must exist and the gap each most commonly leaves.
This table describes the STRUCTURE of self build cover and the sequence in which it has to be arranged. It quotes no premium and names no insurer, because premiums are rated individually on the site, construction type, value and the policyholder's history, and any figure published here would be illustrative rather than an offer. The unoccupancy range given (cover commonly restricted after 30 to 60 days empty) is stated as the common range in policy wordings rather than as a rule, and the actual limit is a term of whichever policy you hold, which is why it appears in the questions column rather than as a fact. Where a duty is legal rather than commercial, as employers liability is for employers in Great Britain, the table says so and you should take your own advice on how it applies to your arrangements.
| Cover | When it must exist | What it protects | Where it commonly fails |
|---|---|---|---|
| Site and works | From first delivery of materials | Works, plus unfixed materials | Theft of unfixed materials, hired plant |
| Public liability | From first site access | Third party injury and property damage | Limit too low for adjoining-property damage |
| Employers liability | Before anyone works under your direction | People working for you | Assuming subcontractor status removes the duty |
| Structural warranty | Arranged BEFORE work starts | Defects in the finished structure | Arranged too late to inspect the build |
| Buildings at completion | At practical completion | The finished home | A gap between works cover ending and this starting |
| Unoccupancy extension | Whenever the finished house stands empty | Perils while empty | Standard cover restricted after 30 to 60 days |
- Self build cover is five separate arrangements on different timelines, not a single policy.
- A structural warranty normally has to be arranged before work starts, because the provider inspects during construction and cannot certify a build it never saw.
- Employers liability is a legal requirement for employers in Great Britain, and whether someone counts as your employee turns on how the work is directed rather than on what the invoice says.
- Site and works cover needs to start at the first delivery of materials, not at the first day of building work.
- A finished but unoccupied house is a materially different risk, and cover is commonly restricted after 30 to 60 days empty.
Cite this page
“When each self build cover has to be in place, and what it leaves out, 2026”, Self Build Insurance Compare, https://selfbuildinsurancecompare.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-15). This table describes the STRUCTURE of self build cover and the sequence in which it has to be arranged. It quotes no premium and names no insurer, because premiums are rated individually on the site, construction type, value and the policyholder's history, and any figure published here would be illustrative rather than an offer. The unoccupancy range given (cover commonly restricted after 30 to 60 days empty) is stated as the common range in policy wordings rather than as a rule, and the actual limit is a term of whichever policy you hold, which is why it appears in the questions column rather than as a fact. Where a duty is legal rather than commercial, as employers liability is for employers in Great Britain, the table says so and you should take your own advice on how it applies to your arrangements.
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Go deeper
Sourced, dated, kept current.
- The order to arrange self build insurance in
Two covers must exist before anything happens on site, and one cannot be bought late at any price. The sequence that avoids the expensive mistakes.
- Where self build cover most commonly leaves a gap
Unfixed materials, hired plant, liability limits and the completion handover. The five gaps that produce most self build claims problems.
- What a lender will require on a self build
Self build mortgages release funds in stages and lenders check cover at each one. What is required, and why the warranty is non-negotiable.
How this compares, and what it will not do
This compares COVERS rather than insurers, and that is deliberate. Premiums for a self build are rated on the site, the construction type, the value and your own history, so a table of named products with prices would be illustrative rather than real, and nobody would be bound by it.
What can be set out accurately is what each cover does, the point in the project at which it has to be in place, and the gap it most often leaves. Those are the things that cost self builders money, and they do not vary by insurer.
Order follows the project timeline rather than price: the covers you need before anything happens on site come first, then those that attach at completion. Arranging them in this order is most of the job.
We do not recommend a policy or an insurer, and no premium appears anywhere on this site. Tell us about the project and brokers who place self build risks will quote you directly.
- Site and works insurance FCA, the Financial Services Register
- Public liability FCA, the Financial Services Register
- Employers liability FCA, the Financial Services Register
- Structural warranty FCA, the Financial Services Register
- Non-standard buildings insurance at completion FCA, the Financial Services Register
Self Build Insurance Compare is an independent introducer site operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd. We are NOT authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, and we are not an insurer or a broker. We do not advise, arrange or recommend any policy, cover or firm: we introduce you to insurance brokers by passing your details to them, and they deal with you directly. We may be paid a commission for that introduction by the firm we introduce you to, and it never changes the premium you are quoted. Nothing here is insurance, legal or financial advice, and no premium is published on this site because self build risks are rated individually on the site, construction type, value and your own history. Whether a particular cover is legally required of you, in particular employers liability, depends on your own arrangements and you should take advice on them. Check any broker or insurer on the FCA's Financial Services Register before sharing documents or paying a premium.
The questions we get
What insurance do I need for a self build?
Five separate things on different timelines rather than one policy. Site and works cover from the first delivery of materials; public liability from first access to the site; employers liability before anyone works under your direction, which is a legal duty for employers in Great Britain; a structural warranty arranged before construction starts; and buildings cover from practical completion. The two that cause the most expensive problems are employers liability and the warranty, because both are commonly left until it is too late.
When do I need to arrange a structural warranty?
Before work starts. The provider inspects at stages during construction, so it cannot usually certify a house it never saw being built, and that makes this the one cover you cannot fix retrospectively at any price. It matters because most lenders will not offer a mortgage on a newly built home without a recognised warranty, so a self builder who leaves it too late ends up with a house that is difficult to mortgage or to sell.
Does my builder's insurance cover me?
Not for your own liability. A contractor's public liability responds to the contractor's liability, not to yours as the person who commissioned the works, and it may not extend to the permanent works at all. Collect certificates from every contractor and check the expiry dates against your programme, but arrange your own cover on the basis that theirs protects them.
Do I need employers liability if everyone is a subcontractor?
Possibly yes, and it is not answered by what the invoice says. Employers liability is a legal requirement for employers in Great Britain, and whether someone is your employee for this purpose turns on how the work is directed and controlled rather than on the label applied to the engagement. Labour-only help and friends or family assisting on site can fall inside it. Take advice on your specific arrangements rather than assuming.
When does site insurance stop and buildings insurance start?
At practical completion, and the join is where an uninsured period commonly appears. Arrange the buildings policy before the last trade leaves rather than after. Then deal with unoccupancy separately: a finished but empty house is a materially different risk and cover is commonly restricted after 30 to 60 days standing empty, with the actual limit being a term of whichever policy you hold.
Are unfixed materials covered?
Ask, in writing, because this is the most commonly sub-limited category and it is exactly what gets stolen from sites. The same applies to plant hired in for short periods. A works policy can cover the permanent works fully and still cap unfixed materials at a figure well below what is sitting in your driveway on delivery day.
How do I check the broker or insurer?
Search the firm on the FCA's Financial Services Register, which is free and public, before sharing documents or paying a premium. Brokers arranging insurance are regulated, and where a policy is arranged by an authorised firm the Financial Ombudsman Service and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme may be available to you. That protection is one of the better reasons to use a regulated intermediary rather than an unregulated introducer offering a cheaper premium.
Sources
Get the timeline right first
Five covers, the moment each has to exist, and the two that cannot be fixed once the build has started.