Welcome to Builtin Insurance

Public Liability insurance in New Zealand is called many things – General Liability, Legal Liability or Public Risk – but all generally cover Legal Liability in respect of Damage and Injury to Third Parties.

Public Liability policies provide protection against claims for compensation in respect of unexpected and unintended personal injury or property damage for which they may be legally liable arising out of their business activities.

In addition, the policy provides for the costs of defending these claims in court, as well as any necessary investigations or negotiations.

"The Builtin Public Liability policy is specially designed by people who understand the building sector,  for the complete NZ building and construction industry - from the largest building construction firm to the smaller tradesman sub-contractor – builders, painters, plumbers, electricians, gib-stoppers – premiums for over 70 trades start at only $250.00 and we can offer limits of liability up to $10,000,000.

In particular, liability for alleged defective workmanship and where product upon which they are working is a building, (which are generally exclusions under most Insurer's policies and why many claims are declined when most needed), are able to be covered by our wording by extending the wording with the Optional Workmanship Extension."

Specific areas for which coverage is available are:

• Manufacture, supply or distribution of products in NZ.
• Damage to property in the Insured's care, custody or control (subject to a sub limit of liability).
• Design error provided property damage or personal injury occurs.
• Damage to leased premises.
• Exemplary damages.
• Sudden and accidental discharge of pollutants.
• Liability assumed by agreement.
• Liability under the Forests and Rural Fires legislation.

If a house which you built or worked upon burned down some time later, and the cause was found to be a nail accidentally hammered into an electric cable, the house owner or insurer will probably be holding you liable, either as the main contractor, or as a sub-contractor.

You’d expect your Public Liability policy to cover you, wouldn’t you? Well, sorry - not so.

Most insurers deem the house to be a product upon which you have been working, and Public Liability policies exclude cover for the product itself, only covering Third Party property. So if the house next door also burned down because the fire spread, you will probably be covered for that, but not for the original house!

Our policy wording is designed specifically to cover you in such situations.

And what if you are held liable for say, damaged windows caused by someone using sandpaper on the frames? You’d expect that to be covered by any Contract Works insurance policy (but it probably won’t be, because that policy excludes ‘faulty workmanship’) ands so the owner or their insurer again seeks recovery from the main contractor &/or subbies on the job at the time. Most Public Liability policies also exclude liability for faulty workmanship, (though usually resultant damage is covered), so no cover again!

Our policy offers an optional extension to provide cover..

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