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Our focus has always been on providing unbeatable service directly to property law professionals. It’s why we took the decision a number of years ago not to deal with insurance brokers. In practice this means that if you want to obtain a quote for your client from the market leader, you can only do this by contacting Countrywide directly. 

After all, legal indemnities aren’t the most straightforward of insurance policies; they're a specialist product, with subtle and complex elements. So, when your client has a development or commercial property transaction with a complex title issue, it makes sense to come directly to the experts, and not rely on a third party to interpret what’s relevant, or to relay the information correctly. We’ll provide a quote that’s tailored precisely to your clients’ needs, and faster than anyone else in the market. It’s for this reason that we are already trusted to provide the right cover required by commercial property lawyers across the country including:

• Major housing developers and service providers on multimillion-pound development sites
• Key clients acquiring large, high-value commercial premises, including shopping centres, retail parks, supermarkets and large office buildings
• Green/clean energy providers on new solar panel sites, wind farms, electric vehicle charging sites and battery storage facilities
• Housing associations acquiring or refinancing housing portfolios

Specialist products for commercial and development sites

Our extensive range of covers includes a number of policies specifically designed for the commercial market. One example of this is our pre or post planning insurance options, where we can provide cover either prior to a planning application being submitted, or once planning consent has been granted. This type of insurance is frequently requested by developers and is available for all the usual title defects such as:

• Restrictive covenants
• Access and services/drainage
• Mining/mineral rights
• Outstanding rights
• Adverse possession/Possessory title

We also offer a ‘Two-stage’ pre and post planning option for many of the most common risks. By splitting the cost over two stages, the land owner and developer each pay for the stage most relevant to their involvement, at the most appropriate time:

• Stage one - essentially the ‘pre-planning’ phase extending up to the grant of planning permission, with a specific policy limit and premium paid at this stage.
  
  
• Stage two - once planning permission has been obtained, the policy limit increases, reflecting the gross development value, which results in an additional premium. This option is available for the full range of traditional policies.

Other specialist covers include:

• ‘Lift and Shift’ cover – our policy provides cover should any third-party attempt to enforce their rights or easements over the existing services that a developer intends to divert by ‘lift and shift’ arrangements.
  
  
• Service Provider cover – suitable for telecommunication, gas or electricity firms that have to dismantle and reallocate installations if the use of service media is prevented at a site following a claim. Our policy covers the expense of completing these works, along with defence and abortive costs incurred.
   
• Judicial review – cover is provided for the costs in responding to or defending a judicial review application, along with delay costs if construction works are prevented by an interim injunction. Should a court order quash the original planning consent altogether, the policy will pick up the expenses incurred in complying with the decision, plus any subsequent loss in market value of the land or property.
  
  
• Rights to light – as standard, our policy includes cover for defence and delay costs, compensation payments, and subsequent loss in market value incurred from a party enforcing their rights to light. If required, we also allow negotiations to be undertaken with some affected parties, subject to a pre-agreed compensation budget.

Our experienced underwriters have the expertise and depth of knowledge to truly understand the complexities of a large-scale development, and they’ll do everything they can to offer you a quote.

Our dedicated commercial brochure provides an overview of the types of policies we can provide our commercial clients, and the service we provide. Give our Business Development team a call on 01603 617617 to request a copy, or email enquiries@cli.co.uk.