Specialist structural warranty insurance for self-builders

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Building warranty insurance built by experts

Only you can create your ideal home. Whether you’re building your own property, customising it or planning a project to sell on, self-building is well worth the effort. But it’s also a big investment so it’s crucial to plan ahead.

With some structural problems taking years to show and potentially costing hundreds of thousands of pounds to repair, you need a self-build warranty you can trust. Our award-winning 10-year structural warranty insurance is a specialist type of cover that protects you against any defects in the design, materials or workmanship of your home for a decade after completion.

At Self-Build Zone, we understand the highs (and lows) of self-building, and we’ve been providing peace of mind for self-builders since 2004. Backed by A-rated insurers and approved by the majority of UK mortgage lenders, our structural warranties enable you to self-build new houses, conversions and extensions safely – and sell more easily. We can even help with building control.

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Self-builds need a structural warranty – here’s why

Self-building is a complex process, especially when structural work is involved. Sometimes, faults in the build quality may only appear over time – even years after you’ve finished.

A building warranty covers you for any defects in the design, workmanship and materials in your self-build, including those affecting the drainage or waterproofing of the property, for 10 years after completion. Such faults can be seriously expensive to remedy, and might even require a full or partial rebuild. With structural warranty insurance you’re covered for the costs of making good on latent defects – giving you peace of mind your self-build investment is protected.

You’ll also need a structural warranty for a self-build, including new builds, conversions and extensions, if you have to sell the property. Most lenders require a structural warranty to mortgage a self-build home, with the building warranty transferring straight to the new owner when sold.

Why choose Self-Build Zone for your structural warranty insurance?

  • 10-year building warranty insurance backed by secure A-rated insurers
  • All warranties UK Finance-approved, so you can mortgage the property
  • Personal service from our expert team, with over 20 years of experience
  • Able to cover most construction methods, including unusual build types such as ICF, Strawbale, SIPs and more
  • In-house technical team who can facilitate your building control and technical audit site visits to help streamline the self-build process
  • Our structural warranty insurance is the tailor-made self-build version of the expert Build-Zone warranty, trusted by major property developers nationwide.

Ensure better protection with a self-build structural warranty

It’s important to understand that a building warranty is different to an architect’s certificate – a self-build structural warranty provides more thorough and comprehensive protection. That’s because it covers defects in the workmanship and materials (where structural claims are more likely) as well as the design of your self-build. An architect certificate only guarantees your new home against defects in design for just six years, rather than 10.

Specialist survey support for your self-build

We know how challenging self-build projects can be, so we’re here to help. We partner with a network of independent technical inspectors who can help you get building regulation approval and carry out building control inspections, so you don’t need to go through your local authority – speeding up the process and making it easier for you. You’ll benefit from:

  • A dedicated surveyor looking after your project from start to finish, who you can call on at any time
  • On-site visits at key stages throughout the build, usually within five working days
  • Formal plan checks along with checking calculations, helping flag and report any issues early
  • Access to highly-qualified surveyors with proven experience in self-build projects
  • Saving time by combining building control with our technical audit inspections
  • Better risk management on-site to reduce the chance of any accidents or claims.

 

Working with your local inspector

If you’ve already made your building regulation application to your local authority or an approved inspector, you simply need to request a warranty ‘without building control’. We’ll then arrange for a suitable schedule of technical audits to be carried out during the project’s duration, alongside the local authority building control inspector.

Call the Build-Zone Team
01843 603345
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Planning a self-build? Don’t forget site insurance

A self-build is a big investment so keep it safe during building works. While your builder’s policy protects what they do, our site insurance protects you, your project, existing structures and the people you bring on site throughout the entire build process.