Reinstatement Cost Assessment
It goes without saying that as an owner of a property it is essential that your asset is fully insured with an adequate level of cover for an appropriate sum. But what is an appropriate sum? This is not something that a lay person can readily assess but the implications of an inaccurate assessment are significant.
Over insure and you will pay excessive insurance premiums. This can be particularly significant for clients insuring medium to large portfolios of property or residential blocks.
More seriously, if you are under insured you run the risk of an insurance company limiting or even refusing to pay out on an insurance claim and leaving you in a perilous financial situation in the event of major damage.
Under insurance can occur when:
- Suitable advice is not taken at the outset of a policy;
- A policy has been in place for a number of years with no inflation factor or an inaccurate inflation factor applied upon renewal on a year to year basis;
- The alteration, refurbishment or extension of a property has not been taken into account.
For owners of individual dwellings or those with a duty to insure residential blocks, Peter Barry are able to assist in providing what is known as a Reinstatement Cost Assessment (RCA). This is a calculation to provide a figure representing the cost to reinstate a property in the event of it being destroyed.
It is generally recommended that a Reinstatement Cost Assessment is updated every three years or more frequently if a property has been extended or altered. It is therefore important to have a periodic and professional assessment of your property to calculate a suitable sum.
This involves an inspection of the building to understand the age, accommodation and construction, taking measurements and running a calculation to industry standards.
If you are responsible for insuring a building and are not confident that you are insured for an adequate sum, please do not hesitate to send a message via our Contact Us page, or call our team on 020 7183 2578 for more information and a free quote.
RELATED BLOG POSTS
New Build Properties and Snagging Lists
There are a number of hoops to jump through when negotiating the purchase of a home, particularly when purchasing a new build property.To add to this burgeoning ‘to do’ list, it would seem that a worrying trend of poor quality control is developing in the new build property sector, even amongst so called ‘luxury’ ... Read More >>
In All Normal Circumstances …
It’s the phrase that party wall surveyors rely on to reassure adjoining owners that they will not incur costs as a result of their neighbours’ works i.e. “In all normal circumstances, the fees of all/any appointed surveyors will be paid by the building owner”. The inquisitive adjoining owner will ask for ... Read More >>
Preparing a Reinstatement Cost Assessments (Insurance Valuation)
The process of preparing a Reinstatement Cost Assessment involves a site visit to inspect the property, take measurements and site notes detailing the type and quality of the accommodation, a calculation of the likely reinstatement cost of the property based on the information gathered during the inspection, and the recording ... Read More >>