Industrial & Warehousing Insurance

Insurance Built for Complex Industrial Portfolios

Industrial real estate has evolved significantly over the last decade.

What was once a relatively straightforward property placement can now involve large portfolios, highly concentrated values, specialized occupancies, complex catastrophe exposures, and increasingly sophisticated insurance structures.

We work with owners, investors, developers, and operators across the industrial sector, including warehouses, distribution centers, cold storage, logistics facilities, flex industrial, manufacturing-related properties, and large-scale garaging.

Our approach is built around understanding the individual properties while also looking at the portfolio as a whole.

For larger industrial portfolios, that distinction can make a significant difference.

The Industrial Insurance Market Is Changing

From Traditional Markets to Layered Programs

Historically, many large industrial portfolios were placed primarily with major domestic and international insurance carriers such as Sompo, Chubb, Zurich, and other established property markets.

These carriers have traditionally provided substantial capacity for commercial property portfolios, allowing many insureds to place large schedules with one carrier or a relatively small group of carriers.

The property market has evolved.

As more capacity has entered the marketplace and underwriting dynamics have changed, we're seeing sophisticated industrial portfolios increasingly consider layered insurance structures that combine multiple sources of capacity.

Instead of relying on one carrier to provide the entire limit, a program may be structured across several layers and markets.

This can include:

• Traditional domestic carriers

• International insurance markets

• London capacity

• Bermuda capacity

• Specialty property markets

• Excess property carriers

• Facultative capacity where appropriate

The objective isn't to use more carriers simply for the sake of using more carriers.

It's about finding the right combination of capacity, pricing, coverage, and risk appetite for the portfolio.

Layered Property Programs

Building the Tower Around the Risk

Large industrial properties can carry hundreds of millions of dollars in insured values.

Putting the entire exposure with a single carrier isn't always the most efficient solution — particularly when the insurance market has significant capacity available across multiple markets.

A layered program allows the risk to be divided into different limits and layers.

For example, a program could have one market providing the primary layer, with additional carriers participating above that layer to build the total limit required by the ownership group or lender.

This approach can create additional competition between carriers and give us more flexibility when negotiating the overall program.

Why Layering Can Matter

A layered structure can potentially provide:

• Access to additional capacity

• Greater competition between markets

• More flexibility in program design

• Access to London and Bermuda markets

• Opportunities to improve pricing

• More efficient deployment of carrier capacity

• The ability to tailor different layers to different markets

The right structure depends on the portfolio, catastrophe exposure, geographic concentration, values, loss history, and the current appetite of the insurance markets.

London & Bermuda Capacity

Expanding Beyond the Traditional Markets

For larger industrial portfolios, the insurance marketplace is no longer limited to the traditional carriers that have historically dominated commercial property placements.

London and Bermuda markets can provide meaningful additional capacity, particularly for larger and more complex property programs. If your broker isn't exploring these opportunities, you may be missing out on meaningful capacity. That doesn't mean London or Bermuda is automatically better than a traditional carrier. It means there are more markets available to evaluate, and a broker needs to understand how to use them effectively.

We evaluate the entire marketplace and determine where each layer of the program makes the most sense. In some cases, that may mean placing a significant portion of the program with a traditional carrier. In others, it may make sense to incorporate London or Bermuda capacity into the primary or excess layers. The answer depends on the risk.

As portfolios grow, the ability to present the entire schedule to the market can create significant negotiating leverage.

We analyze:

• Total insured values

• Property locations

• Geographic concentration

• Construction

• Occupancy

• Roof age

• Protection systems

• Loss history

• Catastrophe exposure

• Flood exposure

• Wind and hail exposure

• Cold storage operations

• Tenant operations

• Business income

• Lease structures

• Existing lender requirements

We then build a submission designed to give underwriters a complete picture of the risk.

The goal is to make the portfolio understandable, defensible, and competitive in the marketplace.

Cold Storage

Specialized Industrial Risks Require Specialized Markets

Cold storage can introduce a number of exposures that aren't present in a traditional warehouse.

Refrigeration systems, temperature-sensitive inventory, equipment breakdown, business interruption, power interruption, and specialized mechanical systems can all materially affect the risk.

We work to ensure that these exposures are properly evaluated when structuring the insurance program.

Depending on the operation, coverage considerations can include:

• Property

• Equipment Breakdown

• Business Income

• Spoilage

• Utility Service Interruption

• Refrigeration equipment

• Temperature-sensitive inventory

• General Liability

• Excess Liability

The key is making sure the insurance program reflects how the facility actually operates, rather than treating it as a standard warehouse.

Distribution & Logistics

Protecting High-Value Industrial Operations

Distribution and logistics properties can involve significant building values, high-value contents, large tenant operations, and substantial business income exposure.

We evaluate both the physical property and the operations taking place within it.

For larger portfolios, we also look at how the individual locations interact with one another from an insurance perspective.

A well-designed master program can help create consistency across locations while still accounting for the unique characteristics of individual properties.

Large-Scale Garaging

Another Example of Why Asset Class Matters

Garaging facilities can present a different risk profile than traditional industrial warehouses.

Vehicle concentration, physical damage exposures, fueling operations, repair activities, security, and third-party liability can all influence underwriting.

Rather than forcing these properties into a generic industrial program, we evaluate the specific operations and work to place the risk with markets that understand the exposure.

Acquisition & Due Diligence

Insurance Can Change the Economics of an Industrial Acquisition

Insurance should be evaluated before an industrial property is acquired — not after closing.

For larger transactions, we work with acquisition teams to evaluate the anticipated insurance structure and identify potential issues before they affect the transaction.

We can help assess:

• Existing insurance costs

• Loss history

• Property values

• Catastrophe exposure

• Wind and hail

• Flood

• Construction and occupancy

• Roof condition

• Deductibles

• Existing exclusions

• Business income exposure

• Lender requirements

• Available carrier capacity

This allows ownership groups to incorporate realistic insurance assumptions into their acquisition underwriting.

Lender Requirements

We Don't Automatically Accept Every Requirement

Industrial transactions frequently involve sophisticated lenders with detailed insurance requirements.

Those requirements can have a significant impact on the final structure and cost of the insurance program.

Our role is to coordinate with the lender while advocating for the client.

If a lender requires a coverage limit, deductible, endorsement, or structure that creates an unnecessary burden, we can engage directly with the lender and provide the underwriting rationale and market support needed to negotiate an alternative.

Sometimes the right answer is to meet the requirement. Sometimes the right answer is to explain why a different structure provides equivalent protection. We don't simply pass lender requirements along to our clients. We negotiate them.

Development & Construction

Industrial Development Insurance

Industrial development has its own unique insurance considerations.

Whether you're developing a new distribution center, warehouse, cold storage facility, or other industrial asset, we help structure the insurance program from the beginning of the project.

Builders Risk

We structure Builders Risk programs around the project's total completed value and construction characteristics, while evaluating additional exposures such as materials, equipment, soft costs, and delay.

Owners Interest

The ownership group may have exposures that aren't fully addressed by the contractor's insurance program. Owners Interest coverage can provide additional protection for the owner's financial interest in the project.

General Liability

Construction sites create significant third-party exposures. We coordinate the required liability structure between ownership, contractors, lenders, and other project participants.

Excess & Umbrella

Large industrial developments can require substantial liability limits. We help structure excess programs that satisfy contractual and lender requirements while remaining commercially appropriate for the project.

Delay & Soft Costs

A major loss during construction can create costs far beyond the physical damage. We evaluate soft costs, financing expenses, architectural and engineering costs, and potential delays when structuring the Builders Risk program.

From Construction to Permanent Insurance

Building the Program Before the Building Is Finished

The insurance strategy shouldn't change dramatically the day a project receives its certificate of occupancy.

We work with developers to plan for the transition from:

Development → Construction → Completion → Stabilization → Permanent Operations

That means considering the permanent property program while the project is still under construction.

This can make the transition smoother and allow the ownership group to enter the permanent insurance market with a clear understanding of the completed asset and its expected insurance requirements.

The Advantage of Knowing the Market

The Market Changes. Your Broker Should Too.

Industrial property insurance is not static.

Carrier appetite changes. Capacity changes. Pricing changes. New markets enter the space. Existing markets change underwriting guidelines. London and Bermuda capacity can become more or less competitive depending on the risk and the market cycle.

A broker who simply renews the same program every year may miss opportunities.

Our approach is different.

We continually evaluate where the capacity is, what markets are competitive, how programs are being structured, and which carriers are willing to take the risk.

For a large industrial portfolio, that market knowledge can be just as important as the relationship with any individual carrier.

The Goal

Not more carriers. Not fewer carriers. The right carriers, the right structure, and the right amount of capacity for the risk.

Whether you're acquiring a single warehouse, developing a major distribution center, or managing a multi-state industrial portfolio, we build insurance programs around the asset — and the strategy behind it.

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