Temporary Fencing and Site Hoarding Contractors Insurance
Temporary fencing and site hoarding contractors secure construction sites and separate them from the public. Mesh panel fencing, timber and steel hoarding, pedestrian barriers, gates and access control systems are installed, moved and removed throughout a project, and most of it stands on or right next to a public footway.
Wind is the hazard that shapes this trade. Fencing panels fitted with debris netting, scrim or printed banners can act like a sail, and a hoarding that was not designed for the loads can blow over onto a pavement, a car or a neighbouring building. When that happens the claim usually involves members of the public.
There are other exposures too. Post holes and ground anchors for hoarding can strike underground services. Panels left on a footway become trip hazards. Fencing hired out to a site can be stolen, damaged or moved by others, and access control gates and turnstiles need to work safely every time somebody passes through.
We can help you set out the mix of installation, hire and design work you do, and arrange public and employers' liability, equipment, professional indemnity and other covers that reflect how your fencing and hoarding is used once you have left it on site.
Common claims and risk exposures
The exposures that produce claims in this trade, rather than a generic list.
Wind blow and collapse
Fence panels standing on blocks and fitted with netting or banners can be lifted by a gust and blown across a footway or into traffic. Hoarding without adequate bracing or ballast can fail along its length. Wind loading is foreseeable, so insurers ask how it is assessed and how installations are checked after high winds.
Hoarding design
Hoarding on the public highway, or of any significant height, is temporary works and should be designed for wind and impact loads. Where you design it, or install it to a standard detail outside its limits, a failure becomes a design question as well as a liability one.
Underground services
Driving posts, augering post holes or fixing ground anchors can strike cables and pipes just below the surface, particularly in footways. Using drawings and cable detection before breaking ground is the control insurers expect.
Trips and obstructions on the footway
Fence feet, stray couplers, panels stacked on the pavement and badly placed pedestrian barriers cause trip claims. Barriers and diverted walkways also have to remain usable for wheelchair users and people with visual impairments, and failures can lead to claims.
Hired out equipment
Fencing and hoarding left on hire is in the control of the site, but if it fails the claim may still come back to the supplier. Theft of panels, damage by plant and alterations by others are frequent, and the hire terms decide who carries the loss.
The cover we arrange
We arrange insurance around the work you carry out, the contracts you take and the sites you work on. The cover available will depend on the individual risk and the terms offered by insurers.
Public liability
Third party injury and property damage, including fencing or hoarding blown onto the public, vehicles or neighbouring property. Main contractors and highway authorities commonly ask for £5m or £10m.
- Injury to pedestrians and the public
- Damage to vehicles and neighbouring property
- Damage to underground services
- Limits typically £5m or £10m
Products liability
Where you hire or sell fencing, barriers, gates or access control equipment, products liability covers injury or damage caused by the equipment after it has left your control.
- Hired out fencing and barriers
- Gates and turnstiles
- Supplied components
- Usually written alongside public liability
Employers' liability
A legal requirement once you employ people, and it can be arranged where required, subject to the policy terms. Manual handling of panels and blocks, vehicle loading and work beside traffic are the risks underwriters ask about.
- Installation and dismantling crews
- Manual handling injuries
- Lorry mounted crane operations
- Labour only subcontractors under your direction
Equipment and stock
Fence panels, blocks, couplers, hoarding boards and gates are spread across many sites at once. The sum insured should reflect the maximum value out on hire, not just yard stock.
- Stock in the yard
- Equipment out on hire
- Theft and malicious damage
- Equipment in transit
Professional indemnity
Relevant where you design hoarding, assess wind loading or specify access control layouts. Design failures are not covered by public liability.
- Hoarding and temporary works design
- Wind loading assessments
- Access control layouts
- Claims made basis
What an underwriter will ask
Having these to hand shortens the process considerably, and usually improves the terms.
- Turnover split between installation, hire, sale and design
- Maximum hoarding height, and whether hoarding is designed by an engineer
- Whether you fit netting, scrim or banners to fencing, and how wind loading is considered
- Proportion of work on the public highway, and whether licences are obtained
- Service location procedure before driving posts or anchors
- Whether you install powered gates, turnstiles or access control systems
- Inspection arrangements for fencing on hire, including after high winds
- Hire terms and conditions, and who carries loss or damage on hire
- Equipment values in the yard and on hire
- Five years of claims, particularly wind blow and trip claims
What affects the cost of your insurance?
The main factors insurers consider when assessing the premium.
Public exposure
Hoarding along a busy high street carries much more third party exposure than fencing around an enclosed rural site. The split of work matters more than turnover.
Height and design
Taller hoarding, and hoarding carrying graphics or banners, is rated differently from standard panel fencing, particularly where design responsibility sits with you.
Hire terms and inspection
Clear hire terms and a documented inspection regime show how claims on hired equipment would be defended or passed to the hirer.
Stock values and security
The value of equipment on hire and in the yard, and how the yard is secured, set the equipment section.
Conditions and exclusions to consider
Terms vary between insurers, so treat these as the questions to ask rather than a description of any one policy.
Design under public liability
Public liability responds to injury and damage, not to the cost of a hoarding design being inadequate. Where you design hoarding or advise on wind loads, professional indemnity fills that gap.
Equipment on hire without cover
Fencing out on hire may fall outside an equipment policy that only covers stock at your premises. The policy needs to extend to equipment on hire, and the hire terms should make clear when the hirer is responsible.
Wind and storm conditions
Some insurers may question claims where fencing was fitted with netting or banners without ballast or bracing suitable for the conditions. Documented installation standards and post storm checks help.
Contractual liability
Main contractor and hire agreements often require you to indemnify the other party in wide terms. Standard policies cover your legal liability, and any wider contractual obligation may need specific agreement from the insurer.
Common questions
What insurance do temporary fencing contractors need?
Public liability is the core cover, typically £5m or £10m, and products liability where you hire or sell equipment. Employers' liability is a legal requirement once you employ people and can be arranged where required, subject to the policy terms. Equipment cover should include stock out on hire, and professional indemnity is worth considering if you design hoarding or assess wind loads.
Am I liable if my fencing blows over in a storm?
It depends on the circumstances. If the fencing was installed correctly for the conditions and someone else altered it, liability may sit elsewhere. If it was not ballasted or braced for netting or banners, a claim is more likely to be found against the installer. Installation records, photographs and post storm inspections are what decide these disputes.
Do I need a licence for hoarding on the pavement?
Hoarding or fencing on the public highway generally needs a licence from the highway authority, which often requires evidence of public liability insurance at a stated limit. The requirement and limit vary by authority, so it is worth checking each one and making sure your policy certificate matches it.
Is fencing out on hire covered if it is stolen?
Only if your policy extends to equipment on hire. Many equipment policies are written for stock at your premises unless extended. Your hire terms may also place responsibility for loss or damage on the hirer, so it is worth making sure the policy and the hire terms work together.
Do I need professional indemnity for hoarding work?
If you only install hoarding to a design provided by someone else, the design responsibility generally sits with them. If you design the hoarding, choose post spacings and foundations, or advise on wind loads, a failure could be treated as a design matter. Public liability does not usually cover design costs, so professional indemnity is the cover that responds.
How do I get a quote from True Risk Solutions?
Call 01304 262880 and speak to a broker, or email info@truerisksolutions.co.uk with what you do, what you need cover for and a phone number with the best time to call, and a broker will call you back. We need a phone number to quote, because the cover and the price depend on questions that are quicker to answer on a call than by email.
Speak to a specialist who understands your industry
Tell us about your business and the work you undertake, and we will come back to you with cover options built around it. Call 01304 262880, or email us with a phone number and the best time to call and a broker will ring you back.