I recently purchased the Builders Risk Book, published by the International Risk Management Institute (IRMI). In a very readable and understandable fashion, the authors write about the insurance needs of the owner, contractor, supplier, architect, engineer and lenders. And perhaps most notably, the book is not written by or for attorneys, but uses plain English to explain very complicated insurance issues to construction related business owners.

The two main focuses of the book are Builders Risk Policies and Subrogation. Of particular interest was the authors’ conclusion that project owners will usually benefit from purchasing a builders risk policy instead of relying on its commercial property policy. The other main focus on subrogation provided a clear explanation of the impact of waiving subrogation and ways to address subrogation questions.

Finally, the book contains a helpful chart that compares the insurance requirements of construction contracts, including the AIA A201, General Conditions; Consensus DOCS 300, Tri-Party Agreement for Collaborative Project Delivery; DBIA 535, Standard Form of General Conditions of Contract between Owner and Design-Builder; and others.

This is an excellent book if you are wrestling with insurance questions on your building projects or in your construction contracts.