Letting a commercial property, an office, retail unit, or industrial space, to a business tenant needs a different insurance structure to both residential landlord cover and standard owner-occupied commercial property insurance.
Commercial landlord insurance covers property owners who let commercial premises to business tenants, combining buildings cover with property owners' liability and loss of rent protection specific to a commercial letting arrangement.
Why lease terms matter for cover: Many commercial leases place responsibility for buildings insurance explicitly on the landlord, with the cost recharged to the tenant via a service charge. It is worth confirming this split is clearly documented in the lease, since disputes over who was responsible for insuring a property are a genuine and recurring issue.
Commercial tenants typically take on more responsibility for the internal fit-out and contents than residential tenants do, so a commercial landlord policy usually focuses more narrowly on the building structure and less on contents, which is more often the tenant's own responsibility to insure separately.
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See My Cover Options →Responsibility for buildings insurance depends on the specific lease terms. Always confirm the insurance clause in the lease before assuming responsibility.