Insulation Manufacturing Insurance Checklist
What to Buy, What to Declare & What to Avoid

Checklist Part 1: Factory, Buildings & Property Insurance

Property insurance protects your physical assets — the factory, machinery, stock, and sometimes your site infrastructure. For insulation manufacturers, the biggest property shocks are usually fire, flood, escape of water, storm damage, theft and malicious damage. The checklist below focuses on what to buy and what to declare.

Buildings (If You Own the Premises)

• Reinstatement value confirmed: rebuild cost (not market value) including demolition, debris removal and professional fees.
• Construction details accurate: walls/roof materials, cladding type, compartmentation.
• Sprinklers / detection declared: and maintained with service records.
• Utilities and plant rooms listed: boilers, compressors, electrical rooms, substations.
• Any vacant areas declared: vacancy conditions can affect cover.

Contents, Plant, Machinery & Trade Fixtures

• Full equipment list: major production lines, mixers, reactors, curing ovens, cutting/laminating, packaging, racking.
• Replacement cost basis: confirm whether assets are insured new-for-old and whether inflation protection applies.
• Electrical risks: surge protection, preventative maintenance, inspection regimes.
• External plant: silos, pipework, loading systems, extraction and filtration units.
• Engineering/Machinery Breakdown considered: standard property doesn’t always cover mechanical/electrical breakdown.

Stock, Raw Materials & Finished Goods

• Peak stock value confirmed: not the average. Consider seasonal uplift or declaration policy.
• Stock valuation basis: cost vs selling price vs cost-plus uplift aligned to your cashflow needs.
• External storage declared: yards, canopies, containers and “in the open” storage often need endorsement.
• Third-party storage considered: warehouses/distributors may need extension or contingent cover.
• Housekeeping and segregation: documented controls for fire load and contamination risk.

Security & Policy Conditions

• Alarm conditions understood: correct set/unset procedures, keyholder response expectations.
• CCTV coverage and retention: useful for theft and malicious damage claims.
• Fire doors, extinguishers and hot works: procedures documented.
• Maintenance and inspections: insurers may ask for evidence after a loss.

If you want, we can build a “property schedule” that insurers expect: a clear site overview, construction, protections, sums insured, and a stock profile that explains how values peak.

Checklist Part 2: Business Interruption (BI)

Business Interruption cover is what keeps the business stable after a major property loss. For insulation manufacturers, downtime can be long: rebuild, recommissioning, machine lead times and re-qualification of production can take months.

BI Essentials

• Indemnity period: choose a realistic period (often 12–36 months depending on plant lead times).
• Gross profit sum insured: accurate and based on accounts (including trends/seasonality where possible).
• Increased Cost of Working: cover for outsourcing, temporary premises, expedited shipping and hire plant.
• Key dependencies: power, utilities, critical suppliers and single points of failure identified.
• Claims evidence: ensure finance team can provide management accounts quickly after an incident.

BI Add-ons Worth Considering

• Denial of access: if site access is restricted after an incident nearby.
• Non-damage BI: specialist extensions may be available but are underwriting-led.
• Supplier/customer extensions: for key upstream or downstream dependencies.
• Contingent stock issues: where WIP is lost and lead times are critical.

BI is one of the easiest places to underinsure. A short indemnity period is often “cheap” at renewal and catastrophic after a major loss.

Checklist Part 3: Public Liability, Product Liability & Employers’ Liability

Liability is where insulation manufacturers can face very high severity risk: building product disputes, defect allegations, fire performance questions, and long-tail claims. Your programme needs to match your products, distribution model and territories.

Public Liability (Operations)

• Correct activities declared: manufacturing, warehousing, loading, deliveries, site visits.
• Visitor/contractor controls: induction procedures and site safety.
• Limits aligned to contracts: main contractor/merchant requirements.

Product Liability (Products)

• Product range described accurately: insulation types, facings, additives, intended use and restrictions.
• Territories declared correctly: UK-only vs export vs worldwide; disclose any higher-risk territories.
• Contractual liabilities reviewed: warranties, indemnities, fitness for purpose and limitation clauses.
• Aggregation wording understood: how multiple claims are grouped matters for building product risks.
• Defence costs treatment: inside/outside the limit can materially change protection.

Employers’ Liability (EL)

• EL limit: typically £10m in the UK (higher by contract sometimes required).
• Occupational health risks: dust/fibres, chemicals, heat, noise, manual handling, repetitive tasks.
• Labour-only subcontractors: arrangements declared and contracts understood.

If you provide technical advice, specification support, training or system recommendations, add the next checklist section: Professional Indemnity.

Checklist Part 4: PI, Recall/Withdrawal, Transit & Cyber

These are the add-ons that often make the difference between “basic cover” and a programme that stands up when a dispute escalates.

Professional Indemnity (PI)

• Do you provide advice? specifications, calculations, system recommendations, or technical help-lines.
• Document control: version control for data sheets and installation guides.
• Contract review: ensure PI aligns with liabilities you accept.
• Retroactive cover: ensure historic advice isn’t accidentally excluded.

Product Recall / Withdrawal (Where Appropriate)

• Recall plan documented: named responsible person, escalation triggers, contact lists.
• Traceability: batch coding, retention samples, ERP customer mapping.
• Trigger understanding: regulatory, defect, customer-driven withdrawal wording differs by insurer.

Goods in Transit

• Own vehicles vs carriers: different cover structures.
• High-value consignments: set “any one vehicle” and “any one consignment” limits correctly.
• Loading/unloading damage: ensure scope matches your operations.

Cyber & Data

• ERP/production systems dependency: ransomware can halt production and shipping.
• Supplier attack routes: shared portals, remote maintenance access.
• Data exposures: customer records, HR data, contracts, pricing.

You don’t need every optional policy — but you do need the ones that match your real exposure. Insure24 can help prioritise based on your operation.

Checklist Part 5: Renewal Data Pack (What Insurers Need)

The fastest way to improve outcomes at renewal is to present a clear, structured summary. Insurers are more comfortable when they understand the risk. Here’s what we typically request for insulation manufacturers.

Core Information

• Company details, trading history and group structure
• Turnover split by product type and territory (UK vs export)
• Claims history (5 years ideally) including open/closed status
• Site list with addresses, use, construction and protections
• Sums insured: buildings, plant, contents, stock (including peak)
• BI figures: gross profit and desired indemnity period

Compliance & Governance (Often Needed for Product Risks)

• Quality system overview (ISO or equivalent processes)
• Testing/certification governance summary and change control
• Traceability approach: batch coding, retention samples, ERP mapping
• Recall plan (if seeking recall cover)
• Contracts/standard terms summary and any unusual liabilities accepted

With this information, Insure24 can approach the right insurer markets quickly and negotiate terms from a position of strength.