Insuring Historic Buildings and other Heritage Assets

This guidance is intended to help owners, managers, surveyors and other professional advisers involved with the insurance and assessment of reinstatement costs for historic buildings and other heritage assets. The term ‘heritage assets’ encompasses a broad range of buildings, monuments, sites, places, areas and landscapes that have historic significance and interest. They may not be listed but still have significance within their local context.

Advice is given on obtaining insurance and establishing the extent of cover required. The latter is often framed by financial and planning constraints as well as the statutory duties associated with public use, or any purpose requiring public or employers’ liability. Methods for establishing the appropriate level of reinstatement costs are outlined.

This guidance is mainly aimed at larger more complex historic buildings, often with associated outbuildings or structures. It is also relevant for those who want to understand the range of issues and risks involved with insuring any historic building or structure whatever its size and complexity.

The guidance stresses that insurance is just one part of a proper risk-management strategy that takes full account of potential loss from a lack of repair and maintenance, fire, theft, flooding and other more general and property-specific risks.