Architects Professional Indemnity Insurance
An architect's liability is built into the building. Design decisions become physical and stay there, and a defect may not appear until the structure has been occupied for years, which is why this profession is underwritten on a claims made basis with the run off question never far away.
The exposure is wider than design alone. Most practices also administer the contract, which means certifying payments, issuing instructions and deciding extensions of time, and claims can also arise from that role rather than from the drawings.
Fire safety considerations have materially changed underwriting in this sector. Since Grenfell, insurers have restricted cover for cladding and external wall systems, and the Building Safety Act 2022 extended the limitation period for Defective Premises Act claims to thirty years retrospectively, so work completed decades ago remains live.
We can advise architectural practices of any size on professional indemnity, including the ARB and RIBA requirements, the fire safety exclusions now common in the market, and what happens to cover when a practice closes or merges.
Common claims and risk exposures
The exposures that produce claims in this trade, rather than a generic list.
Design that fails in use
Water ingress at junctions, inadequate thermal performance, condensation and movement are the ordinary design claims. They tend to emerge one or two winters after completion, by which point the practice has moved on and the file is the only record of what was decided.
Fire safety and external walls
The most severe exposure in the profession. Specification of cladding, insulation, cavity barriers and compartmentation can be revisited years later, and most insurers now apply specific exclusions or conditions for combustible materials.
Contract administration
Overcertifying a payment, granting an extension of time wrongly or failing to issue an instruction properly creates a claim from the employer that has nothing to do with the design. It is a distinct hat, and the duties are different when wearing it.
Scope and expectation
Disputes frequently turn on what the practice agreed to do rather than whether it did it well. Where the appointment is informal, or where services were reduced to save fees, the client's expectation and the contracted scope diverge and the gap becomes the claim.
Liability outliving the practice
A retiring principal or a dissolved partnership does not end the exposure. Claims made cover responds to the policy in force when the claim is made, so without run off there is nothing to answer a claim arriving after closure.
The cover we arrange
We arrange professional indemnity and related insurance around the services you provide, the clients you work with and the contractual requirements you face. The appropriate cover and limits will depend on your individual activities and the terms available from insurers.
Professional indemnity
The core cover: claims arising from negligent act, error or omission in professional services. Written on a claims made basis, so the policy that responds is the one in force when the claim is notified, not when the work was done.
- Negligent design and advice
- Claims made basis
- Defence costs, often in addition
- Retroactive date covering past work
Contract administration exposure
Claims arising from the administrative role: certification, instructions, extensions of time and inspection. Included within professional indemnity, but worth confirming the policy contemplates it where the practice acts as contract administrator.
- Certification and payment decisions
- Extensions of time
- Site inspection duties
- Instructions under the building contract
Run off
Cover continuing after a practice ceases, merges or a principal retires. Given the limitation periods now applying to building work, run off is arranged for years rather than months and needs planning before closure rather than after.
- Continues after the practice ceases
- Essential on a claims made basis
- Commonly six years or longer
- Arrange before closing, not after
Public and employers' liability
Injury and damage arising from the practice's own activities, including site visits, and to employees. Separate from professional indemnity, which does not answer a physical injury claim.
- Injury during site visits
- Damage to a client's property
- Employers' liability, legally required
- Office premises and visitors
Office and cyber
Practice equipment, drawings and data, together with cover for a cyber incident. A practice holding years of project files and client information has a genuine exposure to ransomware and data loss.
- Equipment, models and drawings
- Data restoration after an incident
- Ransomware and business interruption
- Notification obligations
What an underwriter will ask
Having these to hand shortens the process considerably, and usually improves the terms.
- Fee income for the last and the coming year, split by project type
- The largest project by construction value the practice has worked on
- Whether the practice works on residential blocks above eighteen metres
- Involvement in cladding, external wall systems or fire strategy, past or present
- Whether contract administration is carried out, and under which forms
- Appointment documents used, and whether liability is capped and net contribution applies
- Claims and circumstances notified in the last six years
- ARB registration and whether the practice is RIBA chartered
What affects the cost of your insurance?
The main factors insurers consider when assessing the premium.
Fee income and project type
The base rating figure, adjusted heavily by what the practice works on. Residential, particularly high rise residential, is rated well above commercial or heritage work of the same fee value.
Fire safety involvement
Any history with cladding or external wall systems is the dominant question. It determines availability before it determines price, and a practice with no such involvement should say so clearly at presentation.
Appointment terms
Capped liability, net contribution clauses and standard RIBA appointments all support better terms. Signing client drafted appointments without review does the opposite.
Claims history
Notified circumstances count as well as paid claims, because insurers rate the file rather than the outcome. A clean six years is worth a great deal on this class.
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.
Fire safety and cladding
Most insurers now apply an exclusion or a restrictive condition around combustible cladding and external wall systems. The wording varies considerably and is one of the most important parts of an architect's policy to read closely.
Work outside the retroactive date
Where a policy carries a retroactive date, work completed before it is not covered however long the practice has been insured. Changing insurer can reset it inadvertently, which is why continuity matters more than price.
Gaps between policies
On a claims made basis, a lapse of even a few days can leave a claim notified in that window entirely uninsured. It is the most avoidable failure in this class.
Fitness for purpose obligations
Professional indemnity responds to a failure to exercise reasonable skill and care. Where an appointment promises a specific outcome, that heavier obligation is generally uninsured, which is why appointment wording is reviewed before signature.
Common questions
How much professional indemnity do architects need?
The ARB Code requires adequate and appropriate insurance, and RIBA chartered practices have their own requirements, but the practical figure is set by your appointments. Many clients specify a limit, and on larger projects £2m or £5m is commonly required against a practice that might otherwise buy £1m.
What does claims made actually mean for us?
The policy that responds is the one in force when a claim is made against you, not the one in force when you did the work. That is why continuous cover matters, why a gap is so damaging, and why run off is essential when a practice closes.
We have never touched cladding. Does the exclusion still affect us?
Most policies now carry some fire safety wording regardless, but a practice with no involvement is in a much stronger position. Say so explicitly at presentation, with evidence of the project types you work on, because insurers are pricing uncertainty as much as exposure.
How long do we need run off cover for?
Longer than used to be the case. Six years was the conventional answer, but the Building Safety Act extended limitation for Defective Premises Act claims to thirty years retrospectively on work already completed, so the right period is a judgement about what the practice has built rather than a standard number.
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.