What Insurers Ask About Security At Your Vacant Property

As part of many modern insurance policies for vacant commercial properties, security is a non-negotiable. It reassures your insurer and helps protect your investment, your local community, and property prices across your area. Our guide helps you secure the right insurance and understand when (and why) professional vacant property security services are necessary.

The Security Questions Vacant Property Insurers Ask (And How To Answer Them)

Let’s start with a brief overview of what most insurance providers will ask, and how that factors into the decisions you make around your security package.

1. What Type of Property Do You Need To Insure?

This is the most basic question you’ll be asked when sourcing insurance for your vacant property. It helps insurers determine the risks associated with your property, as well as understand where there might be risk factors associated with insuring or paying out for claims at your property. A great example of this is a vacant retail unit. 

Historically, one of the more at-risk premises (given that they’re usually located in high-traffic areas, and likely to attract substantial attention), retail units are often tied to more pronounced risks, and therefore a higher insurance premium. They might also have additional terms as part of any documentation, such as specifications for any locks, boarding, or physical security measures.

Some specialist vacant properties (like schools, agricultural premises, or religious buildings) may require specialised insurers to be able to effectively and safely protect the property. Agricultural buildings, for example, often utilise NFU Mutual as these have traditionally been the insurer of choice for rural communities. 

An insurer might also ask if the vacant property you’re looking to insure is a “multi-use premises”. This essentially means that there are additional risk factors to consider, and it can have a drastic effect on the price you pay. A vacant industrial facility falls into this category, as there’s likely to be multiple points of concern across storage, shopfloor, offices and staff facilities.

These inherent risks are what ultimately sparks the conversation around investing in appropriate security for your vacant property. They’ll also determine what you should have in place to avoid overpaying for your insurance, and to ultimately mitigate the concerns your insurer might have.

2. Have You Got Any Renovation Or Remediation Works Planned?

If you’re planning to sell or rent out your vacant property (as so many property owners are), you may be looking to invest in renovations, repairs or improvements to make it more desirable to potential residents or buyers. Naturally so – your vacant property represents a major investment, and potential to capitalise on that investment.

However, with those works at your property comes an increased risk. The regular comings-and-goings of any necessary tradespeople create concerns around access, as well as possible property damage from which a claim could arise. Similarly, any large-scale remediatory works (like the replacement of dangerous cladding) will bring their own set of risk factors.

You’ll likely need to provide an expected timeline for the works taking place, as this can then be applied to the relevant period for the insurance. For instance, if you’re conducting works over the summer months, your monthly premium might need to be inflated to reflect those works and the risks they bring with them.

On the security side, you might choose to schedule relevant security measures ahead of time, so that your premiums can reflect the measures you have planned. For example, insurers are likely to offer lower premiums if you can demonstrate that the security you’ll have in place will mitigate the possible risks to access (such as specialist access and control systems).

3. How Long Is The Property Likely To Be Vacant For?

Another essential consideration for both you as the property owner, and for insurers as the ones bearing the risk, is how long your property is likely to be vacant for. For some, that won’t be known – conservative estimates from the British Property Foundation estimate that around a third of all vacant commercial properties remain that way for over 2 years.

An estimate here works well, but you should always let your insurer know that you don’t currently have a buyer lined up, or that you’re not currently inviting applicants for rental or purchase. This will likely impact your premium, but not giving a falsified date will have much more catastrophic impacts. 

The reason behind this question – and how it links to security at your vacant property – is that statistics show that longer-term vacancies, especially at commercial premises, invite additional pressures. They’re more susceptible to squatting, likely to invite unwanted attention on social media, and at risk of repeated vandalism, criminal damage or arson attacks.

Having a long-term security plan keeps those premiums low, even if there’s a prolonged period of unoccupancy. A good, BS EN 50131-compliant intruder alarm system, alongside sturdy boarding and locks, is often sufficient here, but some opt to go the extra mile with mobile security patrols.

4. What Are The Access Arrangements For The Property?

Your insurer might ask about how access to the property is controlled and monitored. That’s essential, as we’ve seen – different parties (both invited and trespassory) might look to gain access, and you need to be aware of that so  assets and property are kept safe, and that you’ve got control over the property even while it’s vacant.

As part of any documentation you provide, you’ll need to detail both the physical measures you have in place (like locks, doors, shutters, windows, or more advanced methods of controlling access, like coded locks or ID badges) as well as how any access is logged (either through paper-based methods like a logbook, or digital records created by intelligent access controls).

This can then help an insurer determine the risks associated with both authorised and unauthorised access, and how you’re working to mitigate those. It can also help them understand what vetting is in place if the property is particularly sensitive (a vacant hospital, for example).

5. Are There Any Materials Or Equipment Stored At The Property?

While it’s unlikely that you will have valuable materials, equipment or assets stored at the property, this will still feature as a question that insurers will ask when you enquire. We’ve seen examples of property owners either mistakenly leaving assets on site, or using it as a temporary storage area, both of which can inflate insurance premiums.

There’s a simple reason behind this. It paints a target for trespassers and thieves, and ultimately creates a risk that doesn’t necessarily need to be there. It’s thought that around 80% of all crime is opportunistic, and by leaving assets on display at your vacant premises, you’re presenting that opportunity.

Insurers are acutely aware of this, and claims can and do arise as a result of property owners not realising (or being unaware of) the dangers that these assets bring with them. Equally, as we’ll touch on shortly, there are assets that we often don’t consider – wiring, copper, metals and even steel boarding are targeted by thieves, and increase the risks your property faces.

6. How Often Will You Visit The Property?

This is much more important than it seems on the surface. Our research across multiple companies that specialise in insurance for vacant commercial properties shows that it’s actually a required stipulation for property owners to visit on a routine basis. 

The exact frequency of visits will depend on your policy wording, but high-value insurance specialists Rivr Cover place this in the region of every “7 to 14 days”, while other sources point towards it being closer to once a month. Again, this is policy-specific, and we’d advise looking at your chosen insurer in detail to so  you’re able to match the visitation frequency they’re looking for.

If you choose to, you can often outsource your visits to a trusted security provider. They’ll be able to undertake all of the routine duties, as well as provide additional support in the form of detailed, documented inspections, lock and access checks, and property analysis for the right security measures.

This will need to be discussed with your insurer before you make any commitments, but given that you’ll be outsourcing the services to a trusted, licensed provider, this may actually cause premiums to decrease.

7. Are There Any Active Utilities Or Power At The Property?

More of a risk to safety than it is to security, this is often how an insurer determines what the most pressing risks are to your property. If your premises have been vacant for an extended period, the likelihood is you’ll have already turned off the power and cut off the water supply to avoid any issues with stagnation (Legionella, for example).

If this is the first vacant property you’ve held, or it’s a property that’s not been vacant for very long, it might be that insurers charge a higher premium as the power is still active. This prompts concerns on multiple levels, not least of which is the potential for electrical fires or circuit overloads.

Water ingress is also a massive issue, causing irreparable structural damage and mould issues if left untreated for any length of time. Couple that with the attractiveness of a powered property to squatters and illicit activities (illegal raves, for example) and it’s clear why insurers have reservations around covering a vacant property that still has its utilities active.

A Specialist Suite Of Security Solutions For Vacant Property

While insuring your vacant property can be a difficult road to navigate, particularly if you’re securing a more complex premises, it’s an absolute necessity. Not insuring a vacant property leaves you vulnerable and unprotected in the event of an issue, and without the right level of coverage, a theft can devastate what was once a solid investment.

That’s where professional security services take on increased importance. Leading insurance broker Ellis David points towards security being a stipulation of many of the top vacant commercial property insurance policies, and it’s with that guidance in mind that we’ve crafted our vacant property security packages.

All designed to suit your specific premises, and to tick every possible box your insurer might require, ProFM Group deliver a suite of solutions that are designed to fit around the UK’s growing population of vacant commercial premises.

That begins by getting the basics perfect. We’ll complete a full assessment of your vacant premises, and use that as a basis to identify where the potential security vulnerabilities are, what we can deploy to mitigate them, and how that will intersect with a lower insurance premium for you.

We’re able to deliver everything your property (and its insurance policy) might demand. From Paxton Gold and NSI Gold-accredited systems that comply fully with BS 50131, to mobile patrols designed around the schedule you set, to property inspections with detailed documentation, logs and photographic evidence, we bring the same attention to your vacant property that you would

Plus, with an always-available online portal for all of our patrol logs and reports, you’ve got everything you need to hand when it comes to renewing your policy. Get in touch today on 0808 175 3158 to experience the ProFM Group difference, and to secure a free, no-obligation quote for fuss-free compliance and peace of mind.