Builders risk does not end when the policy expires. It ends earlier than that.
Almost everyone reads the expiry date and assumes that is the finish line. The policy ends at the first of several triggers, and the date on the schedule is usually not the first one. Moving in, handing over, or letting a tenant start early can end cover on a project that is still being worked on.
Build the project file The short answerCover runs until the date printed on the policy
Cover runs until the earliest of several events, whichever happens first
Occupancy. Including partial occupancy of one unit or one floor
When does builders risk coverage actually end?
At the first of several triggers, not at the expiry date. The usual list is: the property is occupied or put to its intended use, the owner accepts it, your insurable interest ends, the project is abandoned, permanent insurance takes over, or the policy expires. Whichever arrives first closes the policy, and occupancy is very often the earliest.
The exact triggers and any grace periods are written into the specific wording, and they differ between insurers and between forms. That is why the honest answer to “when does mine end?” is that somebody has to read your policy, not quote a general rule. What is consistent everywhere is the shape: earliest of, not last of.
A fire in a building that is finished but not handed over, on a policy that quietly ended six weeks ago when the first tenant moved in, is an uninsured total loss on a completed structure.
Where the hole opens up.
Builders risk has ended
Because someone occupied, or the owner signed acceptance, or your interest in the property finished when the last payment cleared.
Permanent insurance has not started
Because nobody arranged it yet, or it was arranged from the handover date and the handover slipped, or the owner assumed the builder still had it.
Three ordinary decisions that end the policy.
A tenant moves into the finished floor
The building is not done. One floor is. The lease starts because holding it empty costs money. On many wordings that is occupancy, and it can affect the whole project rather than just that floor.
The owner signs acceptance
Deficiencies are still being worked through and trades are still on site, but the paperwork says accepted. Acceptance is a trigger on most forms, and the trades still working are now working on a building nobody has insured for construction.
The schedule slips past the term
An extension asked for in week one is routine. Asked for after the term has run out, it is a new submission on a project the insurer can now see is late – and late projects are priced as late projects.
What owners and builders ask us about this.
We are moving into one unit early. Does that really matter?
It can end cover, and on some wordings not just for that unit. Tell your broker before the move rather than after. Arranged in advance it is usually a straightforward endorsement. Discovered at claim time it is an argument you are unlikely to win.
The project is running late. When should I ask for an extension?
The moment you know, and while the policy is still live. Extensions on a policy that is still in force are ordinary. Cover asked for after it lapsed is a fresh underwriting decision, and the insurer prices what it can now see.
Who arranges the permanent policy, and when does it start?
This is the question that creates most of the gaps. Owner and builder each assume the other has it, and both assume it starts on the day in the contract rather than the day things actually happened. Agree it in writing, with a date, before handover week.
Does builders risk cover the existing building during a renovation?
Only if it was written to. The existing structure and the new work can sit on one policy or two, and getting that wrong leaves a gap exactly where a renovation is most likely to cause damage.
The lender wants specific wording. Does that change the end date?
It can. Lender requirements often name the term and what happens at completion. Send us the clause and we will tell you what it actually requires, which is not always what people assume it requires.
Not the question you had? Build the project file and set out your own situation in plain words. A licensed broker reads it and replies in writing.
Send us the policy and the schedule.
We will read the termination wording, tell you which trigger arrives first on your project, and say what has to be arranged before it does. Next business day, and usually the same day.