Construction Liability - BIBA calls for change

That’s why we’re advocating a multi -track approach which should see Government

back the remediation of dangerous buildings first. In order to speed up that

remediation and allow industry to help with that work, Government needs to

underwrite the fire safety risks associated with that work, in the form of an insurance

or indemnity scheme. Professionals who are working to fix the crisis need to be

protected from the potentially disproportionate risk of doing so. Absent conventional

insurance protection, the Government must step in to underwrite this risk.

For less critically urgent work, the insurance and liability requirements of the BSF

need to be amended to more proportionately reflect the risk and the cover that is

actually available in the market.

Finally, we need to rally ourselves for the long-haul which will be changing the

environment. The reason that the construction industry is in this position is because

of the ‘race to the bottom’. Rather than tinkering around the edges, we need to bring

some real structural reform to the legal, commercial and operational environment for

those designing and constructing the built environment.

Paul : These thoughts chime with the risk awareness guidance we have

compiled, communicated and discussed at length with clients for decades.

The feeling we encountered was it was too big for one client or even one

profession to tackle. Craig, what is your ‘next generation’ lens?

Absolutely agree with you both. That we need to look to the fundamental problems in

the industry is a view we have long since held, and critically, shared with those who

will listen. Our role in the food chain, as insurance intermediaries, does tend to see

us view the world as having liability problems and insurance solutions which, even

with initiatives like reforming joint and several liability, is probably not a sufficiently

high-level view to get us out of the weeds.

Dame Judith Hackitt was right to identify ‘culture change’ as being critical to

improving quality and safety in constructions. As I’ve said, we would argue that a

necessary corollary of that culture change is fundamental shift in the position of the

professional team.