Insurance for Shed Erectors and Steel Shed Builders Across Australia

It depends on the cause of the collapse and how your policy is structured. If the collapse is caused by a construction defect such as incorrect installation of a connection, missing bracing, or an erection error, the claim may fall under the completed operations extension of your public liability policy, which covers claims arising from your completed work after handover. If the collapse is caused by a design defect such as inadequate wind loading specification or incorrect structural detailing, the claim goes to professional indemnity rather than public liability.

Many shed erector public liability policies do not include completed operations coverage or include it with significant limitations. And virtually no standard public liability policy covers design liability. If you supply the engineering design as part of your shed erection contract, you need both public liability with a completed operations extension and professional indemnity insurance. A broker reviews the specific terms of your existing policy and identifies which failure scenarios are and are not covered before a collapse makes the question urgent.

Only if you have contract works insurance in place. Until the shed is handed over and accepted by the client, the works in progress, including the steel frame, the partially erected structure, and the kit materials on site, are at your risk as the erector. The client's property insurance does not cover a structure that has not yet been handed over. Your public liability policy does not cover storm damage to the works as it covers third-party claims, not damage to the structure you are building.

Contract works insurance specifically covers the structure under construction against storm, hail, fire, malicious damage, theft, and other specified perils during the erection period. Given that partially erected steel frames are particularly vulnerable to wind damage before the bracing and cladding system is complete, and that rural erection sites are often unattended overnight and on weekends, contract works cover is one of the most important policies in a shed erector's insurance program. Without it, a storm event during erection is an uninsured loss that comes directly out of your margin on the job.

This depends on the specific arrangement with the manufacturer and what your contract with the client says about design responsibility. If you are an authorised dealer installing a manufacturer's standard engineered kit and the manufacturer's engineers have certified the design for the site conditions, including wind classification, terrain category, and floor loads, and you are strictly installing to the manufacturer's specification without modification, the design liability sits with the manufacturer's engineering team and their professional indemnity coverage.

However, if you select the wind classification for the site, specify the concrete slab requirements, advise on the appropriate shed size and configuration for the intended use, or make any site-specific engineering decisions, even informally, you have taken on a design obligation that the manufacturer's standard engineering certification does not cover. In practice, most shed erectors make at least some site-specific design decisions as part of the quoting and contracting process. Have your broker review your standard contract and your typical scope of work to confirm whether your activities attract professional indemnity liability before assuming the manufacturer's engineering covers everything.

You cannot start the job until the certificate meets the subcontract requirement. A $10M policy presented to a principal who requires $20M will be rejected at the site induction and you will not be permitted to access the site until the certificate shows the required limit. The job start is delayed and the head contractor is inconvenienced, neither of which makes a good first impression on a new principal relationship.

The practical solution is to hold $20M public liability as your standard limit so this situation never arises. The premium difference between $10M and $20M public liability for a shed erector is typically modest, often less than $300 per year, and the operational simplicity of having one certificate that satisfies every subcontract requirement you will encounter is worth far more than the small premium saving. Contact Lauren and we will confirm your current limit and whether an endorsement to increase it can be issued the same day.

Shed erector insurance costs vary based on your annual contract turnover, the number of employees, the types of projects you take on, your claims history, and the covers included in the program. As a general guide for Australian shed erection businesses:

Public liability at $10M to $20M for a sole operator or small shed erection business typically starts from $1,500 to $3,500 per year. Contract works insurance is typically priced as a percentage of total annual contract value, commonly 0.15% to 0.35% depending on the project profile. Professional indemnity for design and construct obligations typically starts from $800 to $2,000 per year for a small shed erection business depending on annual revenue. Total program cost for a typical shed erection business covering public liability, contract works, professional indemnity, and tools commonly falls between $4,000 and $10,000 per year. Contact Lauren for a same-day indicative quote based on your specific turnover and project types.