Construction engineering insurance guide for summer peak season: plant insurance needs, key covers, risk controls, and claims tips for UK contractors.
Summer brings longer daylight hours, drier ground, and tighter project programmes. It’s also when many contractors ramp up labour, hire in extra kit, and move plant between sites more frequently. That combination—more activity, more people, more equipment, more movement—creates a predictable spike in losses.
Common summer drivers of claims include:
Higher utilisation of plant and tools (more wear, more breakdowns)
Increased theft opportunities (busy sites, more deliveries, more “unknown faces”)
More hired-in plant (contractual liability and unfamiliar equipment)
More road movements (accidents, damage in transit, third-party injury)
Heat and dust (overheating, fire risk, engine damage, respiratory issues)
Temporary works and fast-paced sequencing (collapse, water ingress, rework)
If you’re operating as a principal contractor, civil engineering contractor, groundworker, or specialist subcontractor, summer is the time to sanity-check your construction engineering insurance and—specifically—your plant insurance.
In insurance, “plant” usually covers the machinery and equipment you use to do the job—owned, leased, or hired.
Typical examples:
Excavators, mini diggers, dumpers, rollers
Telehandlers, forklifts, MEWPs and cherry pickers
Generators, compressors, lighting towers
Site cabins and welfare units (sometimes insured separately)
Attachments: breakers, grabs, buckets, augers
Survey equipment, lasers, small plant and tools
Plant is often the most valuable, most mobile, and most theft-prone asset on a construction site. In peak season, it’s also the asset you’re most likely to rely on to hit deadlines.
Plant insurance doesn’t sit in isolation. Most summer losses involve multiple policies—especially if an incident causes delay, injury, or third-party damage.
CAR (or contract works insurance) covers the works in progress—materials, partly completed structures, and sometimes temporary works—against events like fire, flood, storm, vandalism, and theft.
Summer-specific considerations:
Is the sum insured high enough for peak material storage?
Are off-site storage locations included?
Are you covered for temporary works and design responsibility?
Do you have a suitable “hot works” condition?
Plant insurance is typically arranged as:
Owned plant: covering your machinery and equipment
Hired-in plant: covering plant you rent from a hire company
Hired-out plant (if you hire your own kit to others)
Summer-specific considerations:
Have you added newly purchased plant?
Have you increased hire values and periods?
Do you have cover for attachments and quick-hitch items?
Are you covered for theft from unattended sites?
Peak season means more footfall, more subcontractors, more deliveries, and more interfaces with the public.
Summer-specific considerations:
Higher headcount: are wage roll and employee numbers up to date?
More subcontractors: are you verifying their insurance?
More public exposure: are you working near roads, events, or public spaces?
Engineering contractors and design-and-build firms often have exposures that don’t show up until later.
Summer-specific considerations:
Temporary works design or method statements
Setting-out errors under time pressure
Value engineering decisions to meet programme
If a critical excavator is stolen or a telehandler is damaged, the cost isn’t just repair—it’s lost time.
Summer-specific considerations:
Do you have any cover for increased cost of working?
Are you reliant on a single “key” machine?
Here’s a practical checklist of what to review before summer workloads hit full speed.
Plant can be insured on:
Replacement as new (for newer items)
Indemnity basis (market value at time of loss)
If you’ve bought new kit or prices have risen, underinsurance can bite hard. For hired-in plant, ensure the policy limit matches the maximum value you could have on hire at any one time.
If your work expands geographically in summer—new regions, new depots, or multiple sites—confirm the policy covers:
Multiple sites
Overnight parking at different locations
Storage at home addresses (if applicable)
Plant theft is one of the most common and costly construction claims. Insurers often apply conditions such as:
Immobilisers and trackers on higher-value plant
Key control procedures
Locked compounds, fencing, and lighting
Removal of keys when unattended
Security patrols or monitored alarms for certain risks
Peak season increases “key risk” because of more operators, more shifts, and more handovers.
Practical steps that help both prevention and claims outcomes:
Keep a written key log (who has what, when returned)
Use unique, numbered keys or key cabinets
Fit trackers on high-value and high-theft items
Park plant in a “last out, first in” formation behind other kit
Use ground anchors and chains for smaller plant
Hire agreements can be unforgiving. You may be liable for:
Loss or damage from the moment of delivery
Theft even if the site is “secure”
Damage during loading/unloading
Continuing hire charges while repairs happen
Make sure your hired-in plant cover includes:
The full replacement value
Continuing hire charges (where available)
Cover while in transit
Cover for attachments supplied with hired plant
Summer means more moves between sites. Losses often happen:
During loading/unloading
When plant is transported on trailers
When plant is driven on public roads
Confirm:
Your plant policy includes transit cover
Your motor insurance covers road risks for mobile plant (where required)
Drivers/operators are properly licensed and trained
Not all plant damage is an “accident.” Overheating, dust ingestion, hydraulic failure, and wear-related breakdowns can be excluded unless you have specific extensions.
Ask whether you have (or need):
Mechanical and electrical breakdown cover
Internal damage cover
Hired plant “dry hire” vs “wet hire” responsibilities
Small plant theft adds up fast—especially in summer when sites are busy and storage is stretched.
Check:
Single item limits (e.g., £1,000 per item)
Unattended vehicle theft conditions
Cover for tools left on site overnight
Whether hand tools are included or need a separate tools policy
Peak season is not the time to discover your theft excess is £2,500 per item. Review:
Theft excess vs accidental damage excess
Higher excesses for unattended theft
Any “percentage excess” for certain perils
Understanding the seasonality helps you align cover and risk controls.
Hot weather can increase:
Engine overheating
Hydraulic hose failures
Fire risk from dry vegetation and hot exhausts
Dust-related engine damage
Risk controls:
Daily checks: coolant, oil, filters, hydraulic lines
Fire extinguishers on plant (and in cabs)
Clear vegetation around working areas
Hot works permits and fire watch
The more people on site, the higher the chance of:
Misuse of equipment
Poor handovers
Missing keys
Unauthorised operation
Risk controls:
Operator competency checks and inductions
Sign-in/out for keys
Clear “who can operate what” rules
Rushing increases:
Collisions and overturning
Damage to underground services
Overloading of lifting equipment
Temporary works failures
Risk controls:
Lift plans and appointed person oversight
Service scans and permit-to-dig
Exclusion zones and banksmen
Moving plant between sites increases:
Road traffic collisions
Load shift and transit damage
Third-party injury/property damage
Risk controls:
Pre-move checks and load securing
Route planning (low bridges, weight limits)
Competent transport providers
When something goes wrong in peak season, speed matters.
If theft occurs:
Report to police immediately and obtain a crime reference number
Notify your insurer/broker as soon as possible
Provide plant details: make/model/serial number, value, photos
Provide evidence of security: compound photos, key logs, tracker data
Preserve CCTV and witness statements
If accidental damage occurs:
Make the area safe and prevent further damage
Photograph the scene, plant position, and any third-party property
Record operator details and training records
Keep repair estimates and engineer reports
Track downtime costs if you have relevant cover
Good documentation can be the difference between a smooth claim and a disputed one.
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all policy. The right structure depends on how you operate.
Consider:
A scheduled plant policy listing each item and value
Optional breakdown/internal damage extensions
Higher theft protections on high-value items
Consider:
A hired-in plant policy with a realistic “maximum any one hire” limit
Cover for continuing hire charges
Clear procedures for delivery checks and damage reporting
Consider:
“Anywhere in the UK” cover
Strong transit cover
A standardised security baseline for every site
Use this as a last-minute review before peak season starts.
Confirm all owned plant is listed and correctly valued
Confirm hired-in plant limits match peak hire values
Check theft conditions (trackers, immobilisers, compounds, key control)
Confirm cover for attachments and quick-hitch items
Confirm transit cover and loading/unloading cover
Review excesses for theft and unattended theft
Check tools and small plant limits
Confirm liability limits reflect peak site activity
Update wage roll/headcount for employers’ liability rating
Often, yes. Hire companies typically require you to insure their equipment under a hired-in plant policy or to accept their waiver (which may have exclusions). A dedicated hired-in plant policy can be more cost-effective and provide broader protection if you hire regularly.
It can, but it usually depends on meeting security conditions (for example, locked compounds, immobilisers, removal of keys, or trackers for high-value items). If conditions aren’t met, insurers may reduce or decline a claim.
Many policies include “in transit” cover, but limits and conditions vary. Confirm that loading/unloading and transit by your own vehicles or third-party hauliers are included.
Tool theft from vehicles is commonly restricted. Policies may require forced entry evidence, alarms, or that tools are removed overnight. Check unattended vehicle clauses and single item limits.
Public liability can cover third-party injury or property damage arising from your operations, including plant use, but it won’t cover damage to your own plant—that’s what plant insurance is for.
Insurers typically respond well to documented security and risk management: trackers on high-value plant, formal key control, secure compounds, CCTV, and evidence of operator training and maintenance schedules.
Summer is when construction businesses often make their margin—so it’s the worst time to have a plant loss that stops work. A quick review of your construction engineering insurance, with a focus on plant and hired-in equipment, can prevent nasty surprises when workloads are at their highest.
If you’d like, share the types of plant you use most (owned vs hired, typical values, and how many sites you run at once) and I’ll tailor a tighter “plant insurance checklist” section to match your operation.
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