INDUSTRIES

Commercial Property & Strata

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A CLOSER LOOK AT YOUR INDUSTRY

Start with your business.

A building, its occupants and its ownership structure need to be understood together. A commercial landlord, a strata body and the business occupying a unit can have different interests and responsibilities.

YOUR BUSINESS

Different properties. Different responsibilities.

01Commercial Property
01

Commercial Property

Owning a commercial property is different from operating the business inside it. The owner may depend on rent, while the tenant owns the stock, equipment and trading income. A lease can allocate responsibilities, but it does not by itself confirm that each party has the insurance needed for those responsibilities.

Review the building description, tenant activities, occupancy, reinstatement value and any vacancy or planned works. Building damage, property-owner liability and loss of rent need separate attention. Tenant contents and business interruption should not be treated as automatically included in the owner’s arrangements, and the insured triggers and time limits for rental loss need checking.

02Factories & Warehouses
02

Factories & Warehouses

Industrial premises can look similar from outside while containing very different risks. The type of goods stored, manufacturing processes, building materials, fire protection and adjoining occupancies all help explain the property. A change from simple storage to production, refrigeration or higher-hazard stock should prompt a fresh discussion.

Separate the building owner’s interests from the operator’s machinery, stock and business income. Prepare construction details, floor areas, tenant or process descriptions, replacement values and fire-protection information. If you store goods for others, that custody exposure belongs in the operating business review as well; insuring the building alone does not resolve it.

03Commercial & Residential Strata
03

Commercial & Residential Strata

Strata insurance begins with the scheme, its shared property and the activities taking place across the building. Residential, commercial and mixed-use schemes need their own description: a café, workshop or short-stay occupancy can raise different questions from an entirely residential building. Maintenance, valuations and changes in use remain important between renewals.

The owners corporation’s arrangements should be distinguished from those of individual lot owners, landlords and occupiers. Explain common facilities, building defects or works, tenant activities and the latest rebuilding valuation. Contents, improvements, rental income and business operations need allocation to the appropriate party and policy, subject to the applicable scheme rules and wording.

WHAT TO KEEP IN VIEW

The practical questions

Building and shared-property damage
Changes in occupancy or property use
Property management services and rental interests

MAKING THE CONNECTIONS

Look beyond the label

01

Who owns what, and who uses it?

Identify the building owner, the tenant’s operations and any shared property. A change of tenant, use or vacancy can alter the risk information relevant to the insurance.

02

Rebuilding and rental income

Rebuilding cost is not the same as market value. Discuss demolition, professional fees and the time needed to reinstate. Loss of rent is a different financial interest from a tenant’s lost trading income; the insured event and period must be examined.

03

Strata boundaries

Shared buildings, common property, individual lot improvements and occupiers’ businesses may require different arrangements. Residential and commercial strata have separate reading paths, while responsibility still depends on the scheme and applicable requirements.

IMPORTANT DISTINCTIONS

Keep the boundaries clear.

A building policy does not automatically insure every tenant’s contents, business interruption or liability. Do not assume a strata policy replaces a landlord’s or business owner’s separate insurance needs.
Is loss of rent the same as business interruption?
They can address different income interests. A landlord’s rent and a tenant’s trading income should be identified separately, with their own applicable triggers, limits and periods.

BEFORE WE TALK

Bring the details.

  1. Ownership entity, address, construction and tenant activities
  2. Current rebuilding valuation, rental income and lease terms
  3. Vacancies, changes of use, strata plan and common-property details

Talk through your business.

Tell us what you do, what is changing and what you would like to understand. We can help organise the questions and the information needed for a meaningful insurance discussion.

Speak to a broker