How much does contractors all risk insurance cost?
There's no single price — contractors all risk premiums are driven by contract value, the type of works, project duration, site location, and claims history. Small domestic jobs can see premiums from a few hundred pounds for the whole build period, while larger commercial contracts are usually priced as a percentage of contract value and reviewed project-by-project.
- Premium is calculated mainly from contract value, project type, and duration on site.
- Higher-risk trades (roofing, groundworks, demolition) generally cost more to insure than low-risk fit-out work.
- Adding hired-in plant cover or raising liability limits increases the premium.
- Annual renewable CAR policies can work out cheaper than buying a new per-project policy for every job if you run several contracts a year.
- A clean claims history is one of the biggest levers for reducing premium over time.
The main pricing factors
Per-project vs. annual policies
What pushes the price up
Annual policy beats per-project pricing
Scenario: A small building firm running four extensions a year had been buying a fresh contract works policy for each job, paying separate arrangement fees and minimum premiums each time.
Resolution & Judicial Outcome: Switching to a single annual renewable CAR policy with a declared aggregate contract value cut total annual insurance spend by around a fifth, while also simplifying admin to one renewal date instead of four separate policies.
What You Should Do: Step-by-Step Action Plan
Critical Mistakes to Avoid
- Choosing the cheapest quote without checking the exclusions and sub-limits behind the headline price.
- Declaring an inflated contract value 'to be safe', which simply raises premium without adding useful cover.
- Ignoring how project duration extensions (for overruns) affect the final premium.
- Not shopping around annually — loyalty rarely earns a discount on commercial insurance.