Before the building changes anything, one question is worth clearing up: what do we have now? Reviewing the existing policy is the diagnostic phase of insurance work – quick, free of charge, and valuable in itself: the building gets a picture of where it stands. Often this is the best first step – even with no intention of switching.
- The five questions of a review: is the sum insured right, is the scope of cover complete, are the limits and deductibles realistic, what do the claims statistics say, is the premium in line with the market.
- Ingredients: the policy document, the policy terms, the last renewal notice and the claims list – half an hour with a well-kept archive.
- The output is not a verdict but a status report: all in order / maintenance needed / tendering justified.
First question: the sum insured
The most important point, and the one that most often causes trouble: does the sum insured stand at the building's real rebuild value? The check: when the sum was set and on what basis, whether it has followed the indexations, and whether renovations and extensions have been recorded. If the origin of the sum is hazy, or it has stood unchanged for years, that is the red light – underinsurance is the most expensive silent mistake. The fix: re-sizing the sum insured.
Second and third questions: covers, limits, deductibles
Checking the scope of cover: is everything there that the building needs – water damage, glass breakage, liability, riders suited to the building's features (the map) – and is there anything superfluous: cover that makes no sense in this building's situation. The limits and deductibles: is the liability limit realistic, does the deductible structure suit the building's claims profile (deductible logic). As a broker, what I typically see here is not an outright error but obsolescence: a setting that was right ten years ago may be too tight today.
Fourth and fifth questions: statistics and premium
The claims statistics inform in two directions: recurring claims point to something to do about cover or about prevention, while an improving picture points to room to negotiate (the details). And the question of the premium only makes sense after all of that: measured against the cover and the building's risk profile, is it in line with the market? Only tendering can give the final answer to that – but the review shows whether it is worth starting (the signals).
The output: a status report with three possible endings
The review ends with a short, plain-language summary – in a form that can even be presented to the general meeting. There are three typical endings: “all in order” – the policy is good, the task is the renewal routine; “maintenance needed” – the structure is sound, but the sum insured or one or two covers should be refreshed within the existing policy; “tendering justified” – the cover or the premium has fallen substantially behind the market. Whichever the result, the building has gained: now it knows. There is a question list for the review in the Resources section too – and the way to start is here: a 20-minute conversation.
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